Source: Student end-of-session evaluations, GSW, 2002 and 2003.

In 2002 and 2003 respectively, 97% and 98.6% of students strongly agree or agree that Governor's School was a rewarding experience.

2002 STUDENTS' SUMMARY COMMENTS

• To put it succinctly, this is how I wish high school were and how I hope my college shall be. The exposure to new ideas and emphasis on enrichment, not evaluation, are phenomenal and effective.
  
  
• I think the program challenged me in every way possible—mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I am a better person because of this program.
  
  
• Governor's School has definitely made an impact on my life and I don't think that I will know its depth until I return for school. I have found that most of the main ideas GS has brought about have actually crossed my mind before and I was scared and reprimanded, picked on, and looked down upon for challenging and questioning knowledge. Now, I feel like I can go back and be so much stronger b/c I don't feel alone in my quest for knowledge. Also, being in what some would see as a liberal group of individuals in a liberal setting has tested and strengthened my religious beliefs and my faith. Being around other focused intelligent people, I feel like I have cheated myself and I have let others cheat me. I am ready for a change! I want to make a change, and now I feel like I have the strength to do it.
• I may not be radically different but I can tell that I've changed for the better and positive change is something everyone could use. Also it has provided some path to my previously shapeless future.
  
  
• I have developed a more accepting attitude towards controversial material & opposing beliefs. I understand many more perspectives that others have & this array of viewpoints has helped me to better establish & support my opinions. . . . Its atmosphere is incomparable. . . It has motivated me to be unique & go deeper than I've ever gone before.
  
  
• First, I have been exposed to some concepts, ideas, theories, etc that I might never have been, had I not attended. I believe some of my beliefs may have diverged a little from what they once were, b/c I've seen both sides of an issue—pros, cons, etc. Other beliefs have been strengthened, b/c I've had to defend them and rebut others in heated debates. I know that I've become more accepting of others, and I hope I can take that acceptance with me from here and share it with those at home, those who are not as accepting. I used to be one of them. I would hope to say that now I am not.
  
  
• GS has been a place where I have been forced to question and examine all of the different aspects of my life, yet I have never felt like I was being attacked. I feel like a stronger, and more self-aware person because of the extensive discussions in my Area II and III classes. . . . I am eternally grateful for the opportunity that was given to me. I feel like I have acquired more knowledge in the past six weeks than I have acquired in 17 years of living. And I'm not talking about superficial knowledge, but rather knowledge that resembles wisdom.
  
  
• This is the best summer of my LIFE, I've never been so aware of life.
  
  
• I loved it here so much I just got tears on the evaluation because I'm leaving. What does that say?

2003 STUDENTS' ANSWERS TO THE FOLLOWING QUESTION

If one of your friends considered applying to Governor's School in the future, what would you tell him/her?

• Look, if you attend GS, you will be faced with several things: you will have to make new friends, you will be away from home for 6 weeks. However, they will hit you with earth-shattering topics, and (even though it gets a little goofy), there is no better place to learn, laugh, and grow up. …
  
  
• I'd say that it is a place where talented people can truly and finally be themselves and not worry about a backlash.
  
  
• It is a wonderful experience well worth the time and the effort of applying and attending. The instructors are wonderful and beyond qualified and the other students are people who will challenge and amaze you.
  
  
• Definitely go for it! You will have the most amazing summer—you'll meet people both incredibly like and unlike yourself—your mind will be opened and it will help form you into a thoughtful, hopeful person.
  
  
• G. S. is a home to many different types of people where people become family by the end of the 6 weeks.
  
  
• It was the greatest time of my life. I developed a strong sense of identity in this very accepting environment of talented and brilliant, yet humble friends.
  
  
• I would tell him/her to apply only if he/she wanted to spend 6 weeks in intellectual paradise with 399 other awesome people and make lasting friendships and go back to the "real world" with a new mindset and new ideas.
  
  
• It's everything you've ever wanted in a normal high school but couldn't have.
  
  
• I would strongly encourage anyone to try out this challenge, this alternative way of life, of thought and feeling. Any reaction to Gov's School will be powerful, and, to me, a powerful reaction is equivalent to one step out of mediocrity.
  
  
• GS has changed my entire outlook. I think that it is a wonderful program. The friends, memories and experience in my discipline that I obtained at GS [drama] will last many years and aid me in my ultimate goal of learning what it is to be a responsible adult.
  
  
• Intellectually, Governor's School broadens the views of students by introducing them to new, and sometimes challenging, ideas. Through learning and discussing, students become aware of their stances on certain topics, and are made stronger in their opinions. Residentially, students room with other youth with whom they can communicate on an intellectual and social level.
  
  
• I had an amazing, incredible summer. I loved experiencing the different performances, the discussions, refining my art [drama], but one of my favorite aspects was the optional seminars. They rocked my world - literally.
  
  
• I felt that every aspect combined allowed me to learn a lot about people, myself, and my art [drama].
  
  
• I'm a changed person.
  
  
• When college applications ask me about the best time in my life…I now have my response ready: GSW 03!
  
  
• The sad thing is, I worry that I will never be this content in an academic setting ever again in my life.
  
  
• I love it and I wish I could come again. I love the diversity of outstanding students!
  
  
• Governor's School is a place where you can do what you enjoy or want to learn about (chorus, drama, dance, English), while learning a new way of doing what you love. It's also a place where you stretch your mind to think about the world and yourself in new ways. The social aspect is probably one of the best parts - You meet so many awesome, interesting people who you'll probably know forever.
  
• I enjoyed the level of freedom I got and I thought it was perfect for this experience. I also really really enjoyed seeing my fellow students perform and I think that these are some of the most important parts of GSW.
  
  
• Tell students that G. S. will bend your mind, challenge your views, and open you to a new and unconventional world.
  
  
• It's hard to describe how incredible the Governor's School experience is - the challenges intellectually and the friendships socially. In my mind, it all comes down to the people, who are some of the most amazing people I have ever and probably will ever meet.