Creating Meaningful Change

“We found that students can often experience what we call a sophomore slump, so we wanted to provide some support to help them transition through that period,” Bauer Honors Program Director Sarah Gnospelius said. “They learn a lot about themselves, how to work in a team and what they need in the environment around them to be successful.” 

The Fall 2025 cohort included 20 students, who identified poverty as a major issue in their community and decided to combat it by creating hygiene kits.  

“We went within our communities and involved organizations at UH to help fundraise for the hygiene bags,” accounting sophomore Alexis Nunez said. “We were able to carry over 126 hygiene packs to the organization BEAR (BE A Resource for CPS Kids), which was really cool.” 

Accounting sophomore Mary Merino said she’s struggled with group work in the past, which motivated her to apply for the program. Now that the semester is over, she identifies as a better collaborator.  

“One of the reasons I wasn’t good at group projects was that I would be controlling and felt the need to do everything,” Merino said. “Doing a project this big with this many people was such a good opportunity to learn how to have many different leaders and accept having a small piece of a big puzzle.”  

Outside of the service project, the program includes regular content sessions with career development assessments and guest speakers. Both students shared that these sessions helped them create meaningful relationships with alumni and engaged them in team bonding.  

They recommend the program for anyone looking to expand their network and who wants to get to know their peers better.