The Georgia Governor’s Honors Program (GHP) is a summer event in which gifted juniors and seniors live on a college campus from mid-June to mid-July. 

“I felt really honored and like I deserved it. I didn’t think I was good enough at first, but since I was nominated, it made me work harder at my goal. It made me feel really accomplished especially since the admission process was so long, it felt amazing,” Kylee Berggen, Etowah alumni, said. 

The process to get into GHP is extremely long. First, students get nominated in a major. Second, they have to do a county application, and go through a county level interview. If accepted as a state finalist, they complete another application and two essays. After being selected as a semi-finalist, they go to an interview at a college, write an essay based on their major, and take an exam. Finally, they are selected as a finalist and could attend GHP. 

“GHP students are a lot more goal-driven and passionate. At GHP, there are no grades, and students are expected to do their work even if there are no grades. Also, students are treated more like college students than high school,” Claudia Noel, senior said. 

Right now, the students are completing the state level of the application. 

“I’m really scared for all the interviews and applications, but if I get in, that would be awesome,” Ashi Zain, sophomore. 

The students go to classes on campus that are very different from their normal, high school classes. Focusing on their major, and teaching them to become the next generation of leaders and critical thinkers, is very important to the future. 

“GHP is the best sample of college life for kids in high school because of the setting each student is put into,” Berggen said. 

Students attend rigorous classes in the mornings and the afternoons. Every night, the students participate in several different activities such as social events and instructional opportunities. 

“The typical day consisted of four hours of our major class and two hours of our minor class. We were able to listen to official’s presentations and ask questions,” Noel said. 

The Georgia Governor’s Honors Program is a great opportunity for students to take classes for their area of study and to get them exposed to college life.