Honors College Selects 13 New Students for Path Program

Photo by Russell Cothren

Incoming Honors College Path students gather on the steps of Gearhart Hall, home to the Honors College, with Terrance Boyd, the Honors College associate director of recruitment who leads the Path Program. Front row, l-r: Tamara Kuykendall, Terrance Boyd, Becky Zapata, Manuel Serna-Aguilera; middle row, l-r: Anthony Sysoukrath, Julissa Cervantes, Clara Puente, Marina Lawhorn; Top row: Nabila Dewey, Michael Monroy, Angel Gatlin. (Not pictured: Angel Jessica McMichael, James Robinson, Guadalupe Torres.)

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The Honors College has selected 13 outstanding high school seniors to enter the Honors College Path Program this fall. The Path Program is a mentoring initiative that helps talented high school students from underrepresented populations achieve academic success at the University of Arkansas.

The students come from cities across Arkansas, and more than half of them are the first in their family to attend a university.

“All of these new students are exceptional, with interests ranging from chemical engineering to religious studies to architecture. Many of them plan to pursue careers in the sciences and medicine,” said Terrance Boyd, associate director of recruitment in the Honors College who heads the Path Program.

These students have ambitious plans for their future. Michael Monroy, from De Queen, wants to research affordable ways to lower fuel emissions to help those who suffer from asthma. Several have an eye on their own heritage in mapping out their careers: Clara Puente, from Springdale, plans to become a bilingual doctor, while Anthony Sysoukrath, from Springdale, wants to design buildings informed by Salvadorian and Laotian cultures.

The Path Program pairs students with peer and professional mentors who help them achieve success in the classroom and explore opportunities to secure scholarships and financial aid, study abroad, conduct research, and get involved in campus leadership.

Established in 2014, the program is already developing a strong track record. Forty-two percent of the students have joined the Honors College, which requires current university students to achieve a 3.50 or higher university GPA. Those who join the Honors College receive an Honors College Study Abroad grant.

“This summer, we have seven Path students who are studying abroad, in Italy, Spain, Sweden, Ireland, Panama, Belize and Thailand,” Boyd said.

The Honors College is building on the program’s success by partnering with the Center for Multicultural and Diversity Education to recruit new students and to support current students. All Path students participate in the center’s Academic Enrichment Program, a four-year, comprehensive support program.

Last weekend the new cohort, together with several sophomore Path students who will be their mentors, traveled to Branson, Missouri, to get to know each other and to visit Silver Dollar City. Boyd is excited to see the program grow. “It’s been great to watch the students find their feet and now, reach out to mentor our new students,” he said. “It’s definitely turning into that family that we envisioned.”

Thanks to lead gifts from Nick and Carolyn Cole and former Honors College Dean Bob McMath and his wife, Linda, a start has been made toward endowing Path Scholarships, but there is more work to be done.

“Some of the students we’re interested in can’t afford to attend the University of Arkansas, and others are recruited by schools that offer scholarships. We’d like to offer these top students the scholarship support that they deserve,” said Lynda Coon, dean of the Honors College.

The University of Arkansas Honors College Path students of 2016, with their high schools and hometowns:

• Julissa Cervantes, Siloam Springs High School, Siloam Springs
• Nabila Dewey, Har-Ber High School, Springdale
• Angel Gatlin, Little Rock Central High, Little Rock
• Tamara Kuykendall, Little Rock Central High, Little Rock
• Marina Lawhorn, Southside High School, Barling
• Angel Jessica McMichael, Harrison High School, Harrison
• Michael Monroy, De Queen High School, De Queen
• Clara Puente, Har-Ber High School, Springdale
• James Robinson, North Pulaski High School, Jacksonville
• Manuel Serna-Aguilera, Rogers High School, Rogers
• Anthony Sysoukrath, Springdale Senior High School, Springdale
• Guadalupe Torres, Horatio High School, Horatio
• Rebeca Zapata, Elkins High School, Elkins

About the Honors College: The University of Arkansas Honors College was established in 2002 and unites the university’s top undergraduate students and professors in a learning environment characterized by discovery, creativity and service. Each year the Honors College awards up to 90 freshman fellowships that provide $70,000 over four years, and more than $1 million in undergraduate research and study abroad grants. The Honors College is nationally recognized for the high caliber of students it admits and graduates. Honors students enjoy small, in-depth classes, and programs are offered in all disciplines, tailored to students’ academic interests, with interdisciplinary collaborations encouraged. Fifty percent of Honors College graduates have studied abroad – three times the national average – and one hundred percent of them have engaged in mentored research.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio of 19:1 that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.