Honors Scholars Freshmen Get an Early Jump on Their Academics

University of Cincinnati Honors Scholars freshmen will be converging on campus one week before classes get underway on Sept. 25. They'll be rolling out of a UC parking lot bright and early at 8 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 18, to head to an overnight retreat at Camp Higher Ground in West Harrison, Indiana.

The retreat will help lead to new friendships before classes begin, but will also prepare these high achievers for the differences between their old high school classrooms and the new college setting.

The 130 freshmen packing for the retreat are among UC's most academically talented students. To graduate with Honors Scholars status, students must hold a 3.2 grade point average (GPA) and earn 36 hours of credits in Honors courses. There are 1,600 students in the UC Honors Scholars program and 440 of them are incoming freshmen.

These are the students who may have appeared to "cruise" through high school while others were asking them for help with their homework. However, Dave Meredith, director of enrollment management in Honors, explains these students often take it the hardest when they find those top grades don't come as easily in college. "They're still smart, but in college, that doesn't always cut it," explains Meredith.

As a result, the retreat will include a series of workshops so students can learn how their personality traits may affect their studies, as well as workshops on time management and study skills. Students will also act out skits on how they plan to handle some of the new situations they'll find at college.

The retreat is supported by part of a two-year, $6,000 Success Challenge Grant to provide services that keep students on track toward their college degree, emphasizing both social and academic programs. The Ohio Success Challenge Initiative, backed by national research, emphasizes that to successfully earn a college diploma, a student needs the support of college connections both in and out of the classroom ? whether it's living in a residence hall, joining a social organization or group related to their field of study, regularly meeting friends for lunch, or even taking in a sporting event. Activities such as the UC Honors Scholars retreat address both, by providing academic support and social interactions for students who are just beginning to build their campus connections.

UC awards an average of about $2.5 million in state funding to Success Challenge programming each year. This is the third year for the Honors freshman retreat.