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When Sac State launched its brand-new honors program this semester, it found 58 bright, motivated students eager to take part.
 A liberal-arts college experience with large metropolitan university opportunities. Who says you can’t have it both ways?
When Sac State launched its brand-new honors program this semester, it found 58 bright, motivated students eager to take part.
With its academically challenging environment, small classes and extracurricular activities, the honors program is designed to fill a gap, says history professor George Craft, who helped develop it. “Numerous programs have been created for student-athletes and disadvantaged students but not for students looking for something like this.” In addition to a curriculum created especially for them—with a culturally rich, worldly emphasis—the program’s first students found a built-in social and academic network and their own home-away-from-home in the form of a student lounge.
The students come from all over California and—in the case of German exchange student Chrissy Griesse—overseas, and are pursuing a variety of majors. Unlike the honors programs at some other universities, Sac State’s is general education-focused and will fulfill most of the University’s general education requirement. For each of the first four semesters, students will take sets of three courses followed by an upper-division component of nine to 12 units. The classes are structured to provide a global perspective, which faculty members hope will encourage study abroad.
This semester featured an honors math course, a world civilization course and the first of a four-semester seminar course on “great books.” The topics make for lively classroom conversations.
Student David Hills became interested in the Honors Program’s small class offerings during orientation. “The open-discussion type studying interested me more than sitting in a large lecture hall,” he says.
For Karissa Horton, who considers herself an aspiring evangelist, the discussions have helped her embrace others’ beliefs. “We all get to learn from each other,” Horton says. “The class discussions make me stronger because I am able to think about different points of view.”
Semester two will feature a second world civilization course and courses in speech/ rhetoric and in philosophy as well as the continuation of the great books seminar. The second year includes honors courses in biology, government and ethnic studies.
Because of the small classes and ample opportunities for discussion, Honors Program Director Roberto Pomo says the relationships between the honors faculty and the students are as much about mentoring as teaching.
“And the mentoring that goes on in the classroom is equally important to what occurs outside the classroom,” he says.
The students have regular social events almost every Friday, which have included workshops on topics such as time management skills, library research tools and health issues. There is also a film series where students view classic movies by legendary directors such as Otto Preminger’s Laura and Mike Nichols’ The Graduate, and discuss them with Sac State professors.
Groups of students have also attended the University’s Green and Gold Gala and the gubernatorial debate the campus hosted in October.
Between classes, the students often congregate in a noisy former dorm room in Foley Hall. The Honors Lounge is open from 7 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. every day. Students can study, work on projects, do homework, or just hang out.
“It’s a wonderful space and they really are taking advantage of it. It’s like Grand Central Station—in a good way,” Pomo says. And it has benefits for the program staff as well. “It keeps us in the loop. We can ask them, ‘How are you doing?’ As a director, if a student wants to talk, I don’t go home. In many ways it’s the most important part of the job.”
Pomo’s involvement with the program was what helped draw Justine Yang. She initially came to Sac State for the theater program and to attend Pomo’s classes. “I was interested in the Honors Program and when I found out Dr. Pomo was in charge, everything fell into place,” she says.
The lounge is one of the responsibilities of the Honors Committee. “We want students to be involved with community work in service to the Honors Program,” Pomo says. “The students take care of the social events. They look after the Honors Lounge.” And an upcoming Honors Program journal will be run solely by the students.
“It’s given me a sense of community,” says Roberto Torres, who chairs the Honors Committee. Before coming to Sac State, Torres was enrolled in Richmond High School’s Law Academy and says the Honors Program is “just like being in my academy in high school.”
Pomo says one of the goals of the program is to develop a strong association with the campus. In addition to regular visits to each class, program staff will assess each student at the conclusion of each semester.
Plans call for a new “class” each year— the students come in as a group and stay together through the years that follow. Currently, the student groups are incoming freshmen, but Pomo hopes that someday they will be able to offer an honors program to transfer students.
“We have had requests from sophomores who have been in community college honors that want to be in an honors program when they transfer to Sac State,” he says.
Recruitment for next year has already begun and Pomo hopes to continue to increase representation among all groups of students. “Usually honors programs are viewed as being a bit elitist,” Pomo says. “At Sac state our mission is to be all-inclusive.
“We want to attract prospective students from a wide variety of regions and school districts. It’s what Sacramento is about, it’s what the state of California is about and it’s what this university is about.”
In addition to recruitment, part of Pomo’s responsibilities include raising additional funds for the new program for things like scholarships, books and faculty research that will impact teaching. He also hopes to send honors students to conferences with faculty and bring in guest speakers with national and international reputations.
Support these Sac State scholars
Sacramento State’s Destination 2010 initiative calls for an enhanced commitment to academics. We recently established a General Education Honors Program for highly motivated students, providing talented first-time freshmen a challenging and invigorating liberal arts education in small class settings. Honors Program students experience individualized attention and interaction from faculty members in and out of class. Can you help Sacramento State offer the very best academic experience to these promising students?
To give, please contact University Development at (916) 278-6989, or e-mail development@csus.edu
Justine Yang
For Justine Yang the theater adage “break a leg” is a familiar one.
 Her first onstage faux pas was while performing a commercial skit at her high school in which she said the wrong line, a controversial one that had been ripped from the script. Instead of urging customers to enjoy Coca Cola, Yang touted “Old Gold Cigarettes.” She soon corrected herself on stage. But for Yang the mistake was “exhilarating.”
“I discovered I could mess up but I could save myself immediately,” she says. “I learned that if things go wrong, I know I can survive.”
Yang is the social chair of the Honors Program’s Honors Committee. She hopes her performing experience helps her pursue a career in broadcast journalism.
Along with drama she is interested in how others approach their lives, having traveled the world with her Taiwanese mother. “I like to think that I am willing to try new things,” Yang says. “Traveling has opened my mind to different cultures.”
David Hills
Cpl. David Hills knows the value of education. He protected the reconstruction of the school system in Iraq as an infantryman, providing security for engineers and contractors refurbishing schools in the Kurdish region during his 2003–04 tour of duty.
 “Education is the foundation for all the good things that can happen in a country,” says Hills, who hopes the schools he helped secure allow a new generation of Iraqis to become educated.
Hills’ father and both grandfathers served in the military, but it was the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks that solidified his decision to join the Army.
While in Iraq, Hills also patrolled roadway checkpoints, conducted raids on homes of suspected insurgents and trained Iraqi National Guard soldiers. “I kind of understand that there is more in life than just going to school,” says Hills, who now uses his Army field bag as his backpack. “I realize that there is more to an education than getting an 'A' on paper.
Karissa Horton
Karissa Horton hopes to one day become an evangelist. And she is off to a good start.
 For four years her Sacramentoarea team has placed in the top 20 nationwide in the North American Bible Quiz Tournament, winning third place in 2004. Thousands of students compete locally, regionally and statewide in the games which are similar to the TV-game show “Jeopardy.”
“I love it,” Horton says. “Its purpose is to help you have the word of God in your heart, but you get to do it with a competitive spirit.”
As for the Honors Program, Horton says it has helped her embrace others’ beliefs. “I am the most outspoken about my faith in terms of the discussions in class.” In turn, she says, “I am learning how other people think or how they express their points of views.”
Along with competing and playing piano, the Honors Committee member enjoys working as a church peer counselor. “If my friends have had needs, I’ve always been there for them.”
Roberto Torres
Roberto Torres has experienced the divide between rich and poor. And someday he hopes to close that gap.
 “I’ve seen so many injustices by the government that it’s made me want to do something more than just protest,” says Torres, an aspiring U.S. Senator.
Torres worked as a summer intern in the Oakland District Attorney’s office and as the chair of the City of Richmond’s Youth Commission. As chair he organized an anti-violence conference that led to plans for a safe and fun recreational “youth café” now under development in the city.
Torres’ mother has been his inspiration to pursue law and public service. An immigrant from El Salvador at 18, Torres’ mother quickly learned English and landed a position at a law firm. Throughout any hardships, he says, “She’s handled it so well. I hope that when I go through something (difficult) that I can be like her and stay strong.”
Torres is hoping to join Sac State’s debate team and participate in student government through Associated Students.
Chrissy Griesse
German ballerina Chrissy Griesse may be graceful when she lands a perfect pirouette, but she is anything but demure when presenting a new business idea. When she was just 17, auto giant Volkswagen awarded her a special prize for her daring entry in its annual business plan competition—usually reserved for the “over-30” entrepreneur crowd.
 Griesse is part of a new generation of Germans pushing for recognition of the value of young entrepreneurs. She hopes to one day establish a business organization for teens in Germany similar to Future Business Leaders of America.
Griesse’s father introduced her to business while running his dental practice. "I used to job-shadow him at his business and whatever I didn't like I started criticizing," she says. Now as a barista for Java City, she has ideas for expediting service and increasing revenues there: "They would be so much more effective if they rearranged the design of their shops."
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