Top scholars, teachers to be honored
By Larry B. Dendy
The university will recognize its top student scholars and some of its best classroom teachers on May 13 during the annual Honors Day program.
Twenty-eight students will be recognized as First Honor Graduates, the largest number ever to have maintained perfect 4.0 grade point averages during their academic careers.
Winners of the 1998 Josiah Meigs and Richard B. Russell teaching awards will be introduced, along with outstanding teachers in each school and college. The Meigs Award is UGA's highest honor for teaching excellence. The Russell Award is given to junior faculty members for outstanding teaching.
Thomas Ganschow, associate professor of history and a Meigs Award winner last year, will be the Honors Day speaker. Ganschow has taught Chinese history and culture at UGA for 28 years and is co-director of UGA's Center for Asian Studies.
The Honors Day program begins at 10:30 a.m. on the North Campus quadrangle in front of the law school. In case of rain, the program will be in Stegeman Coliseum. A decision to move to the coliseum will be announced on Athens radio stations beginning at 7 a.m.
Undergraduate classes will be cancelled for third, fourth and fifth periods (10 a.m.-1 p.m.) so students and faculty can attend Honors Day.
Music will be provided by the UGA Symphonic Band under the direction of Dwight Satterwhite and John Culvahouse.
In addition to First Honor Graduates, several hundred students will be recognized for being in the top 5 percent of their class and for their election to scholastic and leadership honor societies.
UGA began in 1978 recognizing First Honor Graduates instead of designating a graduating senior as valedictorian. The unusually large number this year reflects UGA's rapidly rising academic standards, says Carol Winthrop, assistant vice president for academic affairs and chair of the Honors Day Committee.
"As our students get better and better, more of them are likely to attain perfect academic records," Winthrop says. "They have higher test scores, better grades, and they are pushing up all the standards, such as the cutoff to be in the top 5 percent of their class."
Faculty Teaching Award Honorees
Josiah Meigs Award
