2025 Alumni Weekend: Honors College’s 20th Anniversary Alumni Reunion

Washington Adventist University’s (WAU) 2024-2025 school year marked the 20th anniversary of WAU’s Honors College. Established in 2004, beginning as the Honors Program with a cohort of twenty-three students, the program quickly grew over the years, and in 2017, with the support of Dr. Albert Reece, Dean Emeritus and former University Executive Vice President of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, became the first and only Honors College amongst Seventh-day Adventist institutions. Now, the Honors College is home to seventy students, high achievers interested in multiple disciplines who aim to make an impact on the world.

       

In celebration of twenty years of Honors education, the Honors College hosted an Honors Alumni Reunion in conjunction with WAU’s Alumni Weekend. Partnered with the Music Department, the Honors College opened up the weekend with an Honors & Music Alumni Concert on Friday, April 4, featuring four notable and one soon-to-be alumni—Henrique Da Silva (Class of ‘24), Andre Shawn Salva (Class of ‘25), Shanti Seidel Molina (Class of ’12), Emmanuel Fortin (Class of ’20), and Anna Karla Carreño (Class of ’22). They each showcased their musical talents through multiple genres—through classical, musical, contemporary, and contemporary worship renditions. 

Two of the alumni performed original works as well. Shanti Seidel Molina performed “Un Alma Nueva”, a poem accompanied by piano that she wrote in reflection of the passing away of her beloved pet. Anna Karla Carreño sang “That Someone Isn’t Me”, a song about the struggles of finding oneself in college, underneath the shadow of their family legacy, from Becoming the Musical. Anna Karla co-wrote Becoming with fellow Honors alumna Jenevieve Lettsome and premiered it in the Peters Music Center at WAU in March 2022. The program also featured current Honors College students who accompanied and collaborated with each of the performers in their pieces. 

On Saturday, April 5, the Honors College started the morning with coffee and donuts in its main space in Richard’s Hall 205. Former Chair of the WAU Religion Department and Honorary Honors Program alumnus, Dr. Zack Plantak of Loma Linda University, gave a devotional message to the attendees. In the afternoon, there was an Honors College Open House, which featured a collection of Honors memorabilia from past years, including mugs, signed T-shirts, the Honors Program and Honors College medallions, and a current set of Honors graduation regalia. Of the offered refreshments for the Open House, the main highlight was a wide selection of twenty different international cheeses, one for each year of Honors education. Alumni and guests were also given the opportunity to tour the Honors College, which had undergone several renovations since many of them had last walked its halls. Then, after the WAU Alumni Reunion party in Weis Library, some of the Honors College alumni and students concluded the day with a late-night Alumni versus Students Capture the Flag game—an Honors College Retreat staple—on the Commons. 

Sunday, April 6, featured the highly anticipated annual Honors College Commiseration Brunch with former and current Honors students, faculty, and Honors College Advisory Board members. Typically held on the Study Day before the Spring semester finals, the Commiseration Brunch became an annual event for students to essentially “commiserate” the end of the school year, while enjoying a nice brunch with their peers, faculty, and staff of the Honors College. This year, with the alumni returning, it was decided that it would conclude the weekend. President Dr. Weymouth Spence, Provost Dr. Cheryl Kisunzu, and Chair of the HCAB Dr. Albert Reece each extended welcome to those gathered, noting strong support for Honors education and charging them to continue to pass their experiences at WAU and in the Honors College forward to other future students and alumni. 

Throughout the weekend, WAU students had the amazing opportunity to interact with not just those returning for the Honors College 20th anniversary reunion, but with all of the alumni who came back for Alumni Weekend. It was also an opportunity to announce that the Honors College will hold its Silver Anniversary in five years. We invite our alumni to mark their calendars for WAU’s Alumni Weekend in 2030 to celebrate twenty-five years of Honors education at WAU!

As we reflect on the incredible memories made during this year’s Alumni Weekend and the Honors College 20th Anniversary Reunion, we extend a heartfelt invitation to all WAU alumni, friends, and future students to join us next April for another unforgettable Alumni Weekend celebration. Whether you are a past, present, or prospective member of the WAU family, there is always a place for you here.

If you are looking for a university that offers rigorous academics, vibrant community life, and the opportunity to be part of a nationally distinguished Honors College—the only one of its kind in Seventh-day Adventist higher education—Washington Adventist University is the place for you. We encourage you to discover your potential, pursue excellence, and make lifelong connections at WAU and the Honors College.

Come be part of our growing legacy. We can’t wait to welcome you home!