Why Kairos? A Goodbye to Kairos
So, you’re a high school senior and you’re asking yourself, “Why should I join an Honors Program?” I get it. You did Honors and AP classes in high school, you did a sport, you went to an extra club, and you can’t wait to get out and take it easy. But let me ask you a question: Why did you do those things in the first place?
It was because you loved learning. You loved the chance to be in a rich discussion where everyone was excitedly bouncing off of each other—a storm of intellectual ideas that were building and building until, as a class, you made a breakthrough. The poem made sense, the book had a purpose, the historical event fit into a catalog, the math lined up just the right way. Those moments can give you life and make you realize how much there is in this beautiful world to learn.
When I was invited to apply for Kairos, I had no idea how much it would come to mean to me. I thought it might be a good opportunity to help me meet a few friends. It exceeded those limited expectations, tenfold. I walked into my first Kairos Honors class, with a cohort that I would grow to love and cherish, and my world shifted.
There I was, having that mind blowing moment: My Rhetoric and Research class was discussing Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier and we were caught up in a storm of ideas. All around the classroom, hands were shooting into the air and people were making claims. Our professor sat back and watched as we figured out what it all meant, as we applied it to the here and now of our lives. After that day, I changed my major to English and I’ve been piecing stories together ever since.
I had the opportunity to serve on the Kairos leadership team for three of my four years in the program, finishing out as the Student President. It made the experience all the more special. I had a hand in crafting our community so that we would be one that always supported and loved one another. We learned and grew. As I exit college in just a few short days, I know that my time here at Lee would never have been the same without my Kairos community.
Why should you join an Honors Program? Because it might give you the opportunity to change your life. It might give you the opportunity to learn something new. It might give you the opportunity to be surrounded by people that are just as excited about school as you are.
I will finish this by saying that my name is Hannah Hicks. Most of you will only know me by reputation and at some point, this blog post will lose its luster as I am remembered by only the few and the far between. Nevertheless, I hope these words about my program, my Kairos community, are true for your Kairos community.
Take a chance. Apply to the Honors Program.