The Governor's Honors program is the most prestigious academic program in Georgia. Each summer, the top students from all over the state go to Berry College for a six week program. They will live, learn, and interact with other students in their particular discipline. GHP is about passion. GHP students are not only top students, they are also "crazy" passionate about their subject. They are the students who stay after class just so they can talk to the teacher even more about what was learned that day. They are the students who ask why when they learn something new. They are the students who go home and look up more about what they learned that day. They seem to never get enough of their subject. The GHP student has an outstanding GPA, has great attendance, has a pristine behavior record, and is extremely passionate about their subject. Students are chosen at the school level through a process of creating a resume and having a panel interview. Then they go through an online process of elimination, and ultimately, the finalists are chosen. The categories for GHP are: Agricultural Science and Research, Communicative Arts, Classic Ballet, Engineering, Math, Music, Science, Social Studies, Theater Performance, Visual Arts, and World Languages. If you are interested in applying for GHP, tell your subject area teacher. More information about GHP can be found here. Students must be able to commit to attending the entire time of the program over the summer.
Page One is similar to GHP in that it is also a prestigious program, but on a local level. Page One is a competition among the various high schools in the Chattahoochee Valley area. Page One students are all-around excellent students, but what makes Page One different from GHP is that the Page One student has a passion for service. The Page One student has participated in numerous community and school service projects throughout high school and is usually working on, or finishing up, a big service project their senior year. The Page One student is a leader of the school, makes good grades, and is always there when needed to help out. The Page One representatives submit an application and resume, and go through an interview process. The chosen school representatives will work with a mentor teacher who will help guide them with filling out their nomination packet. Throughout the year, there will be many opportunities to be interviewed in preparation for the final interviews that will be done at Spencer High School in Columbus, usually in early March. There is a big program in March or April that takes place at The River Center in Columbus, where the overall winners will be announced. Winners and runner ups receive a monetary award. The categories for Page One are Citizenship, English, Math, Social Studies, Science, Music, Foreign Language, Career and Technology, General Scholarship, Art, Athletics, Drama, and Journalism. If you think you might be interested in being a Page One nominee, email me and listen to the announcements for information about attending an interest meeting. If you want to see a sample application, click here for a previous application.