Allen County-Scottsville senior Katelyn Ausbrooks spent five weeks over summer break learning, growing, and building friendships as a Kentucky Governor’s Scholar.
The Kentucky Governor’s Scholars Program (GSP) allows selected students to spend five weeks taking college-level class work at selected Kentucky colleges and universities during the summer preceding their senior year. GSP attendees participate in various college-level courses and experience college-life during their five-week stay.
Ausbrooks attended GSP at Morehead University. Looking back, Ausbrooks explained that her experience challenged her each day.
“The program drove us both academically and socially with a variety of events daily,” Ausbrooks said. “We had classes, such as Leadership Seminar, General Studies, and a Focus area that differed for each student, that we had to attend daily. Some days were more focused on one class than another, and some days we had all three, but we usually only spent an average of five hours in classes a day. The rest was a multitude of activities you could participate in if you chose to---clubs, showcase performances, extended perimeter, ACT study sessions, guest speakers/GSP Life speakers, or you could just spend your free time playing games with your friends. GSP gave you so much freedom to choose how you spent your five weeks while also keeping you academically driven on a focus area of your choice. It truly simulated the college experience, without the stress of costs for food, books, etc, and built a community of friends/scholars.”
GSP officials work to create an atmosphere of learning mixed with a realism of the real world. Ausbrook’s classes touched on both, creating an exciting five weeks. .
“I was in some amazing classes,” Ausbrooks explained. “In my leadership seminar, we were involved in deep discussions about stress management, what we wanted from college, what matters most to us in life, and built strong connections with our classmates. These strong connections were also built up from activities we did together. Some of my favorite moments truly showcased the variety in the class---with everyone arguing and laughing when debating if Chick-Fil-A was better than Zaxby’s---but also the time we all stood when the RA leading our class read off something we had all gone through, and seeing just how connected everyone is with their struggles even when they feel alone. Another of my classes was my Focus Area---Political and Legal Issues. We learned about gerrymandering, current issues in our government, along with those in the past, and debated together over a wide range of topics. Being in such a safe, academic space with people who were interested in the same topics as me created such a positive environment for healthy discussion. Even when we disagreed, which was often, everyone was so respectful, and it helped me to learn the value of others' opinions and how debate can be used to unite people, not divide. Finally, my General studies, which was Harvard Community College. We were able to ‘audit’ a different class from a prestigious university every week. This created such a fun environment, allowing us to learn something new every week and switch it up with some fun classes, like How to Write Comics and Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse. My favorite, along with the rest of the class, was Handicapping Horse Races. As funny as it may sound, it did teach me a lot about finances, along with making me feel a deeper connection with Kentucky, as we got to tour the Keeneland Race Track. I also got to meet Lance Gasaway, the owner of Mystik Dan, who won the Kentucky Derby in 2024. Overall, all my courses blended fun and education well, and kept everyone super involved in their learning.”
While academics were the main focus, GSP allows students the time to make friends and engage in memory-making adventures with new found friends.
“All of the activities were so much fun,” Ausbrooks said. “I loved watching people perform at Showcase, especially because there wasn’t a learning aspect to it, just people having fun and doing what they like. People did a variety of things, from dance routines to poetry, singing to magic tricks, and guessing random songs just from a small clip being played. But even the things that weren’t organized felt special. Meeting up with my friends to play board games when we ordered Dominos on the weekend, riding around on a golf cart which felt way faster than any car I’d been in when my friend twisted her ankle, or running around laughing when everyone would forget our umbrellas and 40 of us got caught in the Morehead rain on our way to class. I think the GSP builds such a close-knit environment that’s so unlike anything I’ve experienced before that every moment feels special, especially when there’s no electronics to distract you from the small moments.
Ausbrooks is quick to note that her GSP experience will not be forgotten.
“I think it was one of the best opportunities I’ve taken in my life,” Ausbrooks added. “I was able to meet and bond with so many great people, a lot of them I’m still in contact with, and I feel like I’ve learned so many new things academically that I would have missed out on otherwise. Not only that, but the activities outside of the learning were also so unique to the program, and made my experience so much fun. For instance, I learned how to perform in an A Cappella group for the first time in the A Cappella club, I got to perform songs at Showcase Performances, and I got to do a comedy skit with my entire hall that I lived with. I would have never had the courage to do some of those things if not for GSP, which made it so special. Even the activities I thought would be more mundane turned out to be highlights of the experience! Listening to the guest speakers led me to buy some of their books afterwards, just because I loved listening to them so much, helping a stranger edit their speech for a GSP Life Performance, making us grow closer, and sitting in on a short class about writing, helping to reignite my love for it. I believe GSP was the best way I could have spent my summer, and I’ll go on with those memories forever.”
While Ausbrooks’ time in GSP has passed, the lessons she learned will be a large part of her senior year and going forward into her future.
“I’m taking everything I learned with me into this school year,” Ausbrooks pointed out. “ My passion for learning has never been stronger now that I’ve experienced what I’m interested in, and I’m driven to push myself to make this school year as fun as the summer, even with all its differences, because I know it’s possible. I also plan to take that courage I got to do new things with me, and get out of my comfort zone with things I’ve never done before. But I think even after I’m out of school, I’ll keep on trying new things, embracing and learning more about my passions, and making new connections everywhere I go, because GSP showed how much that can impact my life.”
For all GSP attendees, the summer caps an application and selection process that starts during a student’s junior year. Ausbrooks strongly encourages underclassmen to step out and apply.
“GSP is so much fun, and I’d encourage anyone to give it a shot when it’s application season,” Ausbrooks noted. “It’s an experience I’d hate for anyone to miss out on out of fear of leaving home, not wanting to fill out an application, or the no phones outside of your dorm part. It’s definitely special, but I was just as nervous, and while there were times I was at GSP and wondered if it was worth it, I can confidently say it was, looking back on all the memories I gained from it. There truly is nothing like it!
For more information on GSP or application information, contact the guidance department at the high school.