Georgia Governor’s Honors Program, also known as GHP, is one of the most prestigious summer programs for high school students in Georgia. Roughy 3,200 are nominated each year while only 600 to 700 are actually invited to attend the educational experience. The selection process for Chamblee students is less competitive than private schools, as there is no limit on spots, but nominees must go through a districtwide and statewide interview with the applicant pool decreasing at each step. The district and state applications are different for each major, which can range from an essay for social studies to a creative piece for communicative arts.
The majority of Chamblee students who attended the program this summer applied for German, which was a helpful opportunity for them to develop their language skills.
“I am really passionate about German, and I thought [GHP] would be a good experience for me as the German majors speak German for long periods of time and are immersed in the language throughout the day,” said Harper Dodson (‘25).
A typical day for a GHP student consisted of meals, major and minor classes, and free time, and there were many social events for students to attend in their spare time.
“You wake up at seven, make your bed, get ready for the day. After breakfast, we go to class until 1:30, and then you go to your minor until 4:30. The rest of the day is pretty much free time, but there are dances every week. We also got to play football in the field, and they have seminars you can go to, so there is a lot to do outside of your major,” said Jack Bolte (‘24).
There is no cost to attend GHP as the Georgia General Assembly covers it, so even though the students did have a good amount of freedom, the safety rules in general were pretty strict.
“There were rules and regulations regarding curfew, hall checks, and amnesty bags, in which our RAs collected items we weren’t allowed to have from us at the beginning. We weren’t allowed to keep face peels, scissors, hair straighteners, and other things a student could potentially use to harm themselves. Some of the students talked about how the reason the rules at GHP are relatively strict might be that the program is state-funded, so it can’t have anything go wrong,” said Lyvia Huang (‘25).
The selection process for students is certainly rigorous, but the selection process for teachers is even more difficult. Despite this, there were educators who slipped through the cracks.
“There were actually two teachers who got fired. One of them said the n-word while reading a history passage, and the other said a lot of disrespectful things about indigenous communities, but these situations were handled well,” said Dodson.
Despite this, there were plenty of amazing teachers, especially ones that could offer their expertise.
“My teachers were spastic and honestly very opinionated, but they did have good opinions and they were able to critique your work. They were art teachers, so they were definitely a little crazy,” said Nadia Cho (‘24).
Carol Li (‘24) , a math major, had a similar experience with her teachers.
“My math teachers were really nice. The GHP math teachers have been the same people for many years, so they were very experienced,” said Li.
Li, among other Chamblee students, did dual enrollment during her time at GHP, which is not technically allowed. However, she does wish she had not, which might be why taking online classes is banned.
“I regret doing dual enrollment, which we are not allowed to do, but a lot of people did it anyway. It added a lot of stress, and gave me more stuff to do, so if you go to GHP, then I recommend not having anything else to do. You should truly enjoy everyone there, and I regret not going out more and not doing things like playing cards,” said Li.
Dodson also has regrets of her own regarding her time at GHP.
“I regret not getting to know my roommates better because I know a lot of people would go have meals with their roommates or go to seminars with them, but me and my roommates did not connect like that. The only time the four of us hung out were during hall checks,” she said.
She did make genuine connections with a lot of other people, and she made sure her new friends knew that before leaving.
“My favorite moment at GHP was the last day, even though it was very emotional. It was nice to see my friends one last time and tell them how much I love and appreciate them,” said Dodson.
Nominees will be invited to apply for next summer’s Governor’s Honor Program by November 17th, so consider asking a teacher to recommend you, even if others say not to. GHP is a great opportunity to develop your skills and explore future interests in careers.
