State Finalists for 2021 Governor’s Honors Announced

A total of 16 students from Fayette’s public high schools have been selected to attend the 2021 Governor’s Honors Program (GHP) this summer on the campus of Berry College. Half of the students are from the 2020 GHP cohort. Since the program was not held last year due to the pandemic, students who are still grade eligible (sophomores and juniors) were invited to join the 2021 cohort.

The following students passed a rigorous process to be named state finalists and will attend the GHP at Berry College this summer: (2021 cohort) Maximilian Roggermeire, Communicative Arts, McIntosh High School; Jocelyn Wang, Social Studies, McIntosh High School; Titoluwa Alofe, Mathematics, Starr’s Mill High School; Andrew Haynes, Music; Starr’s Mill High School; Corbin McEver, Music; Starr’s Mill High School; Lara Meersschaert; Social Studies; Starr’s Mill High School; Jahnvi Nakrani, Communicative Arts, Starr’s Mill High School; Richard Wang, Music, Starr’s Mill High School; (2020 cohort) Shefali Tyagi, Communicative Arts, Fayette County High School; Eva Call, attend McIntosh High School last year and now homeschooled, Visual Arts; Yejin Nam, Music, McIntosh High School; Dalton Toner, Engineering, McIntosh High School; Teja Pulagam, Mathematics, Starr’s Mill High School; Amanda Robinson, Science, Starr’s Mill High School; Henry Ravita, Science, Starr’s Mill High School; Cayden Shaffer, Engineering, Whitewater High School.

Students from the 2020 cohort who were selected as state finalists, but are no longer grade eligible to attend this summer’s program are Mark Adams, Social Studies, McIntosh High School; Shaan Haider, Mathematics, McIntosh High School; Jessica Hart, Visual Arts, McIntosh High School; Elise Johnson, World Languages, McIntosh High School; Priyam Kadakia, Science, McIntosh High School; Thomas Keohane, Social Studies, McIntosh High School; Elizabeth Larsen, Social Studies, McIntosh High School; Natalie Robichaux, Communicative Arts, Starr’s Mill High School; Kayla Jordan, Music, Whitewater High School; Pritica Patel, Music, Whitewater High School.

GHP is a four-week intensive study program with coursework and activities structured to stretch and challenge students beyond the normal classroom experience. Acceptance into the program is very competitive. The state receives over 3,000 applications from sophomores and juniors each year and approximately 20 percent or less are invited to attend. Those chosen have demonstrated creativity and giftedness in academic or creative fields, superior ability in their area of study, and the social and emotional maturity required to thrive in an intensive, residential setting for the duration of the program. The Governor’s Honors Program is fully funded by the Georgia General Assembly, so there is no charge for students to attend.

Nomination to the program is a multi-part process beginning at the school system level to determine the nominees who are invited to complete a state application. The Governor’s Office of Student Achievement selects a limited number of students to interview at the state level. Finalists are selected from this final group.