By Annina Burns
Special to Intercom
The Schreyer Honors College is changing the perception of education, by promoting a different way of thinking and giving a global perspective to many students who are just learning about the world outside of Pennsylvania.
But expanding the bounds of education is a journey the college has undertaken since its founding in 1997.
The Schreyer Honors College, established with a $30 million dollar gift from William and Joan Schreyer, has made significant strides in creating new and meaningful ways for students to learn. The gift is the largest personal gift in the University's history and, at the time, created the only endowed honors college at any public university in America.
In just over two short years, the honors college has worked to recruit stronger students to Penn State, provided challenging learning experiences and allowed students to become more involved in their education, according to college Dean Cheryl Achterberg. The college is now home to almost 1,800 students, including Ben Lovett.
Lovett, a sophomore majoring in psychology, said the small classes offered by the honors college have helped him to focus on his career goals.
"I have the opportunity to work with a faculty adviser to gain direction," Lovett said. "The college has also helped provide a social aspect that has allowed me to network academically and meet people with common interests."
When the Schreyers decided to give their multi-million dollar gift to Penn State, Bill Schreyer considered what he could do to make the University different from other universities -- to help it stand out from the nation's 3,000-plus other institutions. He believed the creation of an honors college would catapult Penn State to the top. Now two years later, Schreyer said his "vision is well-accomplished."
"I'm proud to have my name affiliated with a program that not only recognizes the full potential of students, but also allows them to reach beyond the classroom and become a part of a very global society," Schreyer, chairman emeritus of Merrill Lynch and Co., said. "Penn State now has the most comprehensive honors program in the country."
As proof, the Schreyer Honors College has added 56 new honors courses ranging from advanced organic chemistry to "Swans and Dragons: Greek and Asian Philosophy." Not only can students choose from an array of classes, but they are able to experience these selections in a small-class environment. Students are required to take at least seven credits a year in honors courses, which have an average size of 18 to 20 students. The classes are more intensive and allow for more student-faculty interaction.
"Being in the honors college gives you the opportunity to communicate with a lot of faculty, which is tremendous in finding out about opportunities," said Lynne O' Hara, an honors student majoring in history and secondary education. "After taking a literature and journalism class, I was offered by the professor to work with him as a peer mentor for another class.
"It's just a nice way for freshmen coming into a large university to have a smaller community," she added.
Another major stride for the honors college has been the creation of more international experiences and courses focusing on global trends. The impetus for this more global view stemmed from Bill Schreyer's far-reaching vision for Penn State and from his own personal experiences.
"My first international experience was as a result of Air Force ROTC at Penn State. In 1955, I was with Merrill Lynch but I did get called in to serve my two-year tour of duty. I was assigned to Wiesbaden, Germany," Schreyer recalled. It was while living for two years in Wiesbaden that Bill and Joan Schreyer learned the importance of an international experience. Immersed in a new culture, with a different language and unfamiliar customs, the Schreyers gained a new perspective on life and a much broader view of the world -- a view they believe contributed to their later success in the business arena.
To help complete the mission of an international educational experience, the college is offering more courses with an emphasis on international relations and global trends.
One such class, "Global Trends 2000," is taught by Dean Achterberg and Josephine Carubia, service learning coordinator for the college. The class looks at contemporary international issues and focuses on future global trends. As part of the class, students spend four days working on global policy issues with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a non-partisan think tank in Washington, D.C.
Students who don't opt for the international classes may take advantage of the Schreyer Ambassador Travel Grant program, which gives them an opportunity to see other areas of the world. Established in January 1997, again with the help of Bill Schreyer, the program provides financial assistance to students studying abroad. The Schreyer Honors College pays for airfare up to $1,500 for students to discover the larger world. Before the program was created, only five to eight students per semester were able to travel overseas on a service grant from the honors college. But in 1997-98, 107 students went abroad on the grant. In 1998-99, that number jumped to 170.
Jennifer Grub is one student who took advantage of the new grant program, visiting Istanbul, Turkey, in summer 1998 to study physics and Turkish at Bogazici University. In 1999, Grub was in Birzeit, West Bank, Palestine, taking an intensive Arabic course.
The experiences changed her life.
"I used to be certain I wanted to go to graduate school for molecular biology, but now I want to see a bit more of the world first and do something to help people," Grub said.
Other facets of the honors college beyond classes and international experiences for students are the theses they are required to write; the undergraduate research opportunities available to them; the many service
opportunities open; and the myriad programs they can attend, such as distinguished guest lectures and book discussions.
"We're really here to support and encourage students' dreams," Achterberg said. "We're providing students with meaningful opportunities and working on the notion that we are educating students who can make a difference in the world."
For more information on the Schreyer Honors College, visit the Web at http://www.scholars.psu.edu/index.htm.