Although Honors University Honors College cut the ribbon only seven years ago in the fall of 2001, 11 sets of siblings have enrolled in the program, and three couples who are now married met at HUHC. Among the siblings, there are even two sets of twins: Laura and Lisa Guinta ’07 and Sara and Samae Rohani, who are current students.

Joseph Pawlowski ’08 is among the sets of siblings. With regard to what it was like to have his older sister, Christina ’05, in HUHC, he remarked, “The college search can be a long and tiring process, and a bit of guidance and word of mouth goes a long way in preparing to make such a difficult decision.

“In my case, my older sister was a Hofstra Honors College student, so I knew how enthusiastic she was about the program.” Joseph and Christina were mathematics majors, and now their younger brother Michael is entering HUHC and also planning to study mathematics.

In addition to fostering closer sibling relationships, Honors College has also facilitated nuptials. Tom Bishop and Saundra Dobbs, both Class of 2005, met in the Honors College residence halls during the fall of 2001. The California natives immediately connected the first day of school. Two weeks later, the tragic events of 9/11 brought them closer as they felt very homesick.

Saundra said that their relationship evolved after that. “We lived in Honors College housing for two years, studied abroad together, and then moved into an apartment in Elmont for the last two years of school.” She and Tom married on September 10, 2005.

While they were students and since graduation, the Bishops have been committed to volunteer efforts around the world. During their first trip to Ghana in 2004, they both contracted malaria. They consequently worked on raising awareness about the disease, organizing a fund-raiser at Hofstra, and conducting educational workshops during their second trip there. They have also worked on building an AIDS and women’s educational facility in Ghana. They are currently working and vacationing in Vietnam. The proceeds from Saundra’s book, Don’t Sleep Near the Manzanillo Tree: How to Volunteer Abroad Independently and Survive, go toward future volunteer projects.

As the alumni rolls grow, Dean Warren Frisina and his staff are putting in place new tools to help graduates stay in touch with one another and the University. During the program’s inaugural year, Honors College enrolled 92 first year students. By 2009 that number has grown to 221, with a total enrollment of over 1000 students.