The honors program held its first event of the 2025–2026 academic year with their Ice Cream Social on Wednesday, August 27 at Redwood Hall.  

The event is designed to help break the ice for both new and old students of the program. 

Jeffrey Weidenhamer, program director, noted the substantial increase of new students into the program this year at 93 incoming students, compared to last year where the program only saw 65 new students. Currently, however, the program continues to grow strongly with 265 current students involved in the honors program. 

Speaking with some students present at the event helped give some insight into the event and the program. Hayden Bunner, an incoming freshman to the program, noted the following: “I like to learn on a deeper level.” 

He, among many other students, was excited to be at the event and had the opportunity to meet new people.  

Jamie Lutz, a junior in the program, noted when she was choosing Ashland University she felt the honors program had “a great community” and  “felt like it was going to help me accomplish my academic goals that I wanted to achieve and it has.” 

She further went on to mention how one of the best parts about the program is having the ability to take up to 22 credit hours at no additional cost. “Very nice for those busy semesters, especially since I do a lot of extracurriculars that sometimes have random 1-credit or half-credit classes that add up. Having that extra wiggle room has been nice.” When asked if there was anything she wanted students to know, she said, “Just go for it, join the honors program, it’ll open up so many doors for you.”  

To students feeling a need to have more opportunities, joining the honors program could be the push that helps get them there. 

Diane Bonfiglio, the new assistant director of the honors program, provided some unique insight by only being in her role for about two weeks thus far.  

“I really love the opportunity to work with students directly and get a chance to know students inside and outside of the class,” Bonfiglio said. 

Events like these typically happen at the start of the semester to help new students get acclimated to their new organizations quicker.  

“I think it’s about connections. This is an event where students get to sit down with their peer mentors and interact with other students, and I think it’s so important to get them to start to feel connected and feel like they’ve met their people here at AU,” Bonfiglio said. 

When asked about what prospective students should know if interested but unsure about joining, she encourages students to attend one of their events. 

“I would say if you’re interested in joining the honors program then maybe you could consider coming to one of our events that’s open to the public, like our honors lecture that’s coming up on September 17, or come by and talk to Dr. Weidenhamer or myself or Megan and just get to know a little more about what we’re about,” Bonfiglio said. 

The honors program at Ashland University has a lot more than sweet treats to offer students. To those looking to push themselves and open the doors of opportunity, consider checking out the Ashland University Honors Program.