Challenges and obstacles are part of everyone’s life, and the safe waves that push them forward to a successful future allow them to become the best versions of themselves. Challenges are the fuel that makes us achieve our goals and takes us places where we can find someone or something that might help us reach our dreams.
Professor Julia Haseleu, the creator and director of the Madison College Honors Program, invites all students on campus or online to challenge themselves and take their education and ideas to the next level by enrolling in the honors program.
“For many students, it builds their confidence and shows them what they are capable of, all the while making them more competitive for scholarships, jobs, internships and transfers,” Haseleu said.
The honors program will help you build confidence in yourself, which is important to find the path to success, challenge yourself and prove that you can achieve anything.
“The Madison College Honors Program provides eligible students with the opportunity to work with a faculty member on a project that challenges them at a more rigorous level while they learn,” says Haseleu.
All great inventions start with a simple idea, the aha moment. What makes this idea a reality is finding an opportunity to develop it through a series of challenges until it becomes a tool to improve the quality of our life.
“Creating the Madison College Honors Program is my way of honoring my mentors and paying it forward, especially to those students struggling with barriers preventing them from pursuing higher education and a better future,” Haseleu said.
Some people think only certain people can create or invent; they believe discovery is reserved for scientists and engineers. But we all have those moments, the eureka moment, and most of us just let it go because we think it would not be good enough to share.
“Research shows that geniuses in the U.S. are more likely to work average jobs for average pay. I think this is a terrible waste of one of our country’s greatest resources,” Haseleu said.
It is important to recognize the value of discovering a new way of thinking or doing things. Madison College offers a fantastic opportunity for all students through the honors program.
“I have found that Madison College students are capable of reaching great heights,” Haseleu said.
By enrolling in the honors program, you will create a class you designed for yourself.
“The honor program students work one-on-one with facility members over the semester,” Haseleu said.
It is a learning journey to practice exploring the subject of the class and discovering your strengths and talents. And this journey will be full of immersive experiences for both the student and the faculty member; it is a journey about finding the future in the present.
“When paired with an Honors Faculty Member in their area of interest, it is like lighting a match to a fireworks display. Something amazing happens in that partnership—sometimes something that can be life changing for the student, faculty or both,” Haseleu said.
Enrolling in the honors program requires being a Madison College student with 12 completed credits and a 3.5 or higher cumulative GPA (grade point average). If you are new student just out of high school, you need to have a 3.5 or higher cumulative GPA and a recommendation letter.
To receive the honors program medallion, you need to complete two honor projects with an AB average.
This program will make you more competitive for jobs, scholarships and transfers. You could even win a trophy, cash prizes and your name on the honors recognition wall.
You still have time to enroll for this semester. The last day to enroll in the Madison College honors program is Jan. 25. You can learn more about the honors program at madisoncollege.edu/Honors or by contacting the director of the honors program, Julia Haseleu, at [email protected].
“I was an Honors Program student for many years, and my life has been enriched in countless ways as a result of my experiences in Honors Programs,” Haseleu said.