By Jordyn Fouts
Katherine Lu, a senior Honors Humanities and Business Marketing major, chose to enroll in the Honors College because she was looking for a unique college experience. She was looking at other honors programs, but she ultimately chose APU’s because she appreciated the emphasis on virtue, leadership, and being a difference-maker. Katherine knew those were things she wanted to learn. At first, she was hesitant because she was not sure how it would work with her major, but the more she looked at it, the more she realized it would be intellectually meaningful to study something in addition to business.
How does Honors contribute to your experience with your major and your career goals? The main thing that Honors has helped Katherine with is her ability to write. Because of Honors’ emphasis on developing excellent writing skills, Katherine learned to communicate her message effectively and improve her writing style, which increased her confidence in her ability to write in business settings. Being in the business world used to be daunting for Katherine, but being in Honors has helped her develop skills as a public speaker. Finally, Katherine appreciates that Honors has given her a framework of virtue around which to center her life. Katherine’s goal is to be a business person whose primary goal is virtue, not making money.
What does your major bring into your experience with Honors? Katherine expressed that business has to do with understanding people. In order to sell a product to someone, you must understand their needs. In Honors, the goal is also to understand humanity. Additionally, in business, you have to understand your audience. This skill has helped Katherine as she navigated writing Honors papers. Katherine also believes that her experience gave her a unique perspective about business and its relevant issues that she can bring to the table in discussion.
How has Honors impacted your college experience? Honors provided Katherine with a strong community that was integral in cultivating beautiful friendships. Additionally, the books she read for Honors were central in developing her as a person, so that she is “more aware of who I am, who I want to be, and what I want to do--not just as a businesswoman, but also as an individual.”
How has Honors impacted your faith? Katherine expressed that Honors does a good job of making virtue and Christianity seem necessary to her life, as well as helping her make sense of them. Discussing faith issues with both her discussion group and her friends helps her live out her faith and understand the things she has learned.
What is a book in Honors that has made a strong impact on you? For Katherine’s Honors capstone project, or “Oxbridge,” she is writing a book with her classmates about C. S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity, which has significantly impacted her faith development. It has helped her gain a stronger understanding of her faith, and Lewis’s explanation of Christianity is still relevant today. Katherine also pointed to Saint Teresa of Avila’s The Interior Castle as a book that influenced her. She expressed that The Interior Castle made prayer come to life and deeply impacted her perception of God and the Christian faith.
Katherine has loved the way Honors has impacted her faith and helped her develop her voice both personally and as a businesswoman. She has discovered how Honors aims to develop you as a holistic person and help you answer the most difficult questions you will face. We hope you will consider joining the Honors College, and if you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to email or call us!