FORT WAYNE, Ind. — In its fourth year of existence, the Concordia Lutheran High School Honors Academy is now seeing full implementation with all four grades represented in the 44-member program, including five new freshmen this fall.
Begun in 2014, the Honors Academy promotes exceptional academics, leadership and community service among Concordia students by challenging and encouraging students to the next level of their academic success.
With seniors now in the last year of their program, they will construct an individualized research project under the guidance of a mentor in the Fort Wayne community.
“Within this project, the students will demonstrate their ability to create, apply, analyze, synthesize and evaluate information to communicate significant knowledge and understanding,” said Luanne Erdos, director of the Honors Academy.
Erdos notes that the variety of research ideas represents the diversity of personalities in the senior cohort. She hopes that the students will learn more about a specialized field and will apply it to their educational journey beyond Concordia.
“Their research proposals are amazing and capture each of their passions and interests,” she said. “It is a rarity to have high school students engaging in independent research.”
The seniors will continue work on their projects through the fall and will present their findings to the community in the spring, at a venue of their choice.
“I look forward to their public presentations in March and April,” Erdos said.
While preparing for their own senior research project proposals, the junior students will visit multiple universities across various settings to expand their undergraduate admissions perspective. The junior East Coast trip will include tours of Gettysburg College, St. Mary’s College, Georgetown University, University of Virginia, Washington and Lee University and Wittenberg University.
Sophomores will visit Midwest schools including Oakland University (honors college), Concordia University-Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan. The freshmen will remain in-state for their visit to Indiana University. The new freshmen this year are Caleb Goodwin, Megan Miller, Garrett Inniger, Caleb Walz and Joshua Walz.
The diversity of the universities visited will give students a greater feel for what options are open to them when they graduate from CLHS, according to Erdos.
Students in each grade will also interact with experienced community leaders through Leadership Summits. Speakers who are top in their fields lead these summits. Students gain valuable life lessons, morals and strategies for success during the seminars. They also hear stories of personal growth and professional enhancement.
The wide range of industries represented allows students with any career path in mind to build their leadership skills while honing in on the specific qualities they wish to possess, according to Erdos.
Students are invited to apply for the Honors Academy and are selected based on receiving Pass Plus in English, math and social studies on their seventh-grade ISTEP tests or based on the PSAT test scores during their freshman year. Students then submit a creative response before interviewing with the selection committee.
During their four years at Concordia, students are required to take Advanced Placement and dual credit courses; maintain a minimum 3.75 GPA; attend lectures and training for leadership awareness; engage in cultural growth and community networking; and complete community service hours each year, ranging from 15 hours as a freshman to 35 hours as a senior.
Upon graduation, these students will receive distinctive recognition and a special notation on their high school transcripts.
To learn more about the Honors Academy, contact Luanne Erdos at [email protected] or 260-203-4575 or visit www.clhscadets.com/honors-academy.
Concordia Lutheran High School, located at 1601 St. Joe River Drive in Fort Wayne, Ind., was founded in 1935 as a private, co-educational Lutheran high school open to students of all faiths and backgrounds. With Christ at the center, Concordia continues to pursue educational excellence that equips individuals for lifelong learning and service as disciples of Jesus Christ. Learn more at www.clhscadets.com.