The Willow International Community College Center is hosting an Honors Program Information night. The meeting is located in the Academic Center 1 Room 150 (Lecture Hall). Parking is relaxed and free. The event is open to students and their families interested in applying and participating in the Willow International Honors Program for Fall 2013. The meeting is held Tuesday night, Jan. 29 at 6 p.m..

This night is dedicated to informing incoming students to join the prestigious program that Willow International College Center offers. The program offers limited spots, last year the honors program held more then the usual acceptance number, allowing 60 students to participate in the program. Acceptance in this program varies each year.

Once accepted into the program the student must maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher. The student is required to pick two honor courses per semester and they must participate in the honors seminary course which is offered in the spring.

Transfer counselor for Willow, Tasha Hutchings, tells about the advantages of joining the Honor Program and attending a city college before going to a university.

“The Honors Program at Willow is well recognized,” Hutchings said. “Students receive an education plan which allows the student to plan ahead and stay on track with what ever course they are taking. The students have the opportunity to have more one on one time with the teacher wich furthers the preparation for the university he or she is planning to attend.”

Hutchings continued to share of the pros of attending Willow International. The location is very convenient for most and the community that is held within the college allows people to collaborate well with one another.

“Everyone works well together in smaller environments,” Hutchings said “Location is a big selling point. A lot of benefits come from a full time faculty. The cost factor is also convient. Some students are not aware of the major they would like to step into. A city college is an excellent place to find out what you would like to do in life without paying so much money. Virtually, the students are taking the same classes universities offer but without paying so much money.”

The goal for the information night of the honors program is to inform the listeners of the eligibility criteria, student benefits, program curriculum, steps for getting started and meeting the Honor Program faculty and staff. The application deadline is Feb. 19.

Former FC student Dana King, ’12, attends Fresno City College Honors Program and tells of the reasoning of wanting to be apart of this program. King also expresses her thoughts on what the pros and cons are of being apart of the honors program.

“Pros of being a part the Honor Program at Fresno City is that the students get first priority of classes,” King said. “I have a lot of friends that go to Fresno State and they received horrible class times because they are at the bottom of the totem poll. I am currently in a biology class and its awesome because the level of the class is that of a UC school. So I definitely promote the honors program. The only issue that comes is that Fresno City College is a 8 to 10-mile drive for those who live in Northwest Fresno and Clovis. Where the college is located is also a completely different world then what you are used to if you live in those two places.”

Unlike King, Ian Rustigian, ’13, is applying to Willow International but does not wish to be apart of the Honors Program. Rustigian feels that the honors program is something he is not interested in but shares his optimism of attending Fresno City College instead of moving straight into a university.

“I am not applying to be apart of the honors program because it requires you to take certain types of classes that I am not interested in,” Rustigian said. “I don’t know what I want to major in yet so that’s why I want to go to City College. To get my general classes out of the way is the main reason why I want to go to Willow. That way I can start and see what basic classes I want to take first and also State college offers more advanced classes and costs a little more money.”

Another former FC student Paul Ocheltree, ’12, joined the Fresno City Honors Program hoping to get a good experience from it. Ocheltree thoroughly enjoys the program he is in, not seeing too much of a difference between the program and a big university.

“I joined the honors program primarily because I had a very difficult time getting scholarships,” Ocheltree said. “I also did not want to go into debt takng out student loans and have that weighing over my head when I graduate. The teachers in the program have been fantastic. They are professional, well learned, accessible and good at instruction. They are in all ways equal to big university professors. Another pro has been the fact that I have saved a lot of money.”

For more information contact Tasha Hutchings at 559.325.5304 or via email [email protected]

For more news, read the Jan. 23 article, BRIEF: Feather deals with hacker, delays in publishing.