Applications soar at Barrett, the ASU Honors College

<p>A flood of admission applications has hit Barrett, the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Honors</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">College</st1:placetype></st1:place>, this spring. Applications are up 38 percent over last year, with more top <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:state w:st="on">Arizona</st1:state></st1:place> high school seniors choosing Barrett as well as increased numbers from other states.<o:p></o:p></p><separator></separator><p>More than 2,000 incoming freshmen have applied for admission to Barrett, compared to 1,450 last year. They include 12 Flinn Scholars out of a group of 17, the highest proportion that have ever attended ASU. Flinn Scholars are the “cream of the crop” for <st1:state w:st="on">Arizona</st1:state>, receiving full funding from the Flinn Foundation to attend any <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:state w:st="on">Arizona</st1:state></st1:place> university of their choice.<o:p></o:p></p><separator></separator><p>Applications from National Merit Scholars are up six percent over last year, and National Hispanic Scholar applications are up 17 percent. About 72 percent of the incoming freshmen are from <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:state w:st="on">Arizona</st1:state></st1:place>, compared to 66 percent last year.<o:p></o:p></p><separator></separator><p>Among the Barrett students from other states are three cousins from the <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">St. Louis</st1:place></st1:city> area, all National Merit Scholars. Two are current freshmen and the third is entering as a freshman in Fall 2009.<o:p></o:p></p><separator></separator><p>The increased reputation of Barrett as well as the economic pinch of the recession may be leading more <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:state w:st="on">Arizona</st1:state></st1:place> students to stay in state, according to <st1:personname w:st="on">Mark Jacobs</st1:personname>, Barrett dean. Also, ASU is opening a new Barrett campus next fall, the nation’s first campus for honors students at a public university.  </p><separator></separator><o:p></o:p><p>The seven-building campus will house 1,700 students, with 94 percent of the rooms already reserved and an expected occupancy rate of 100 percent. The 8.25-acre campus will feature its own dining center, classrooms, faculty and administrative offices and activity space. It is being developed by American Campus Communities, in partnership with ASU.</p><separator></separator><p><o:p></o:p>Barrett offers an independent living and learning community with services for academically talented students and others who want the same environment. The campus also will feature a student-designed sustainable living community, with low-consumption plumbing fixtures, enhanced energy monitoring, recycled gray water, a green roof and organic garden so students can study and experience sustainable living concepts.<o:p></o:p><o:p> </o:p></p>