GORDON STATE SENIOR HONORED

Gordon State College senior and English major Angela Knight was recognized Tuesday by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia during the annual Academic Recognition Day.

Academic Recognition Day began in 1987 to celebrate individual academic achievement of outstanding scholars in the University System of Georgia.

“I am surprised and humbled by this recognition,” Knight said. “I worked very hard to make A’s and to prove to myself that I could get into college and graduate.”

Knight decided to attend Gordon after prodding by her daughter, Ashley Smith, who graduated the Early Childhood Education program in 2016.

“In fact, she filled out the application for me,” Knight said. “We even had two classes together.”

Knight admits that being in a classroom with students her daughter’s age was, at first, terrifying.

“I felt awkward at first, a little out of place,” she said. “But I found the Honors Program, made some friends and began to feel more comfortable.”

Knight, a veteran of the U.S. Army who also owns a business in Griffin, is so comfortable in a classroom that she plans to continue her education, earning a Master’s degree and then a Ph.D. in English. She wants to teach and in her spare time tending to the orchids she likes to grow.

“Students like Angela personify what the Highlander EDGE is all about - Engaged innovators, Dedicated scholars, Gifted communicators, and Ethical leaders,” said GSC President Kirk A. Nooks. “We salute Angela’s commitment to completing her education and pursing a teaching career.”

Dr. David Janssen, professor of English and Honors Program Coordinator, calls Knight an exemplary student.

“I am thrilled that Angela was chosen as this year’s GSC Outstanding Scholar,” Janssen said. “She is truly exemplary. Angela was a student in two of my English classes, and she is also a member of our Honors Program. She developed one of her papers from my ENGL 2121 class on John Milton’s Paradise Lost and presented it at the Gordon Collegiate Honors Council Conference and our own Undergraduate Research Symposium in 2017.”

“I know she is considering graduate school in English, and if she chooses to go that route, I know she will become an outstanding professor,” Janssen continued. “I am proud that

I have had the opportunity to work with and get to know her.