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VWU to Welcome Fourth Batten Honors College Class

The new class will be welcomed with the traditional Matriculation Ceremony on August 20

University News | July 13, 2020

Virginia Wesleyan University will welcome the fourth class this fall for its highly selective Batten Honors College. Founded in 2016 with the first class enrolled in 2017, the Batten Honors College has quickly emerged as a national niche program of the University.

The newest class boasts a collective grade point average of 4.21 on a 4.0 scale, an average SAT score of 1382, and an average ACT score of 30 (both ACT and SAT are a four-year high). Students hail from all over the country—California, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia—as well as internationally with both Germany and India represented.

The new class will be welcomed with the traditional Matriculation Ceremony on August 20 at 4 p.m. The Batten Honors College Convocation Ceremony, which includes a ceremonial pinning of each new student in recognition of their completion of orientation and formal induction into the program, will be held on September 10. Both events will be streamed on the VWU Digital Broadcasting Network. 

The Batten Honors College is gratefully named for Virginia Wesleyan Trustee Emerita Jane P. Batten and her late husband, Frank Batten, Sr. For nearly 40 years, Mrs. Batten has made Virginia Wesleyan a priority in many different ways, the latest of which is the development of the Batten Honors College.

"Mrs. Batten has been a force for change, improvement, and empowerment, and she believes deeply that students of the highest academic ability will flourish through this innovative program," said VWU President Scott D. Miller. "We are endlessly grateful for her passion for knowledge and her enduring support."

New Batten Fellows and Shumadine Scholars: