With 145 Students Enrolled, S. Daniel Abraham Honors Program at Stern College for Women Comes of Age
As it marks its 10th anniversary this year, the at has matured into a high-caliber program that can boast of accomplished alumni and a crop of current students who are poised to expand the program鈥檚 success.
That success was on display Dec. 9 during a dinner celebrating the 10th anniversary at which Cynthia Wachtell, the program鈥檚 director, reflected upon how far it has come since its beginning. 鈥淭he first year of the honors program had fewer than 40 students participating, and at that point we thought it would be wonderful if someday it could be as big as 90 students,鈥 said Wachtell, who has been director since the program鈥檚 inception. 鈥淲e have far surpassed that goal. We are now at 145 students and had 60 students enter the program this past fall.鈥
The early classes of students laid the foundation for the program鈥檚 later success with their commitment to an unproven venture, said Dr. Karen Bacon, The Dr. Monique C. Katz Dean at Stern. 鈥淲hen you start a new endeavor, the people who join you in it are taking a risk,鈥 said Dean Bacon. 鈥淭hey see the possibilities and opportunities and they aren鈥檛 fearful of the unknown.鈥
Taking the risk paid off in a profound way for alumni such as Meredith Weiss 鈥04S, who was among the first students to graduate from the program. Weiss went on to win the Anne Scheiber Scholarship to Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
So profound was the impact of the honors program on Weiss, in fact, that it was a major reason that she decided to spearhead a fundraising drive to support scientific research by Stern students. 鈥淲ithout the support [of the program and faculty], I would not be where I am today,鈥 said Weiss. 鈥淭hose who choose to give back to Stern recognize that they could not have benefited from all the honors program offers had it not been for the generous support of others beforehand.鈥
Esty Rollhaus, a current student, spoke for many when she paid tribute to the program. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 realize that this program would have such a profound impact on my development as a student, as a person and as a world citizen,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 feel exceptionally indebted to the S. Daniel Abraham Honors Program for its tremendous influence on my experience here at Stern.鈥
To learn more about the program, contact Cynthia Wachtell at wachtell@yu.edu
To make a contribution towards scholarships or for alumnae interested in reconnecting, contact Illana Feiglin at feiglin@yu.edu
