As the John H. Martinson Honors Program approaches its 20th anniversary year in 2026 – 2027, we’re reflecting back on some of the amazing students who have graduated from the program since its inception in 2006. Jing Li was in the very first class of Honors Program students admitted in fall 2006 and was a Georgia Tech varsity swimmer during her time on campus.  Jing graduated with a degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISYE) in 2010 and now works in San Francisco as a Product Management Senior Principal at Accenture where she focuses on emerging technology and product innovation for enterprise clients.

For Jing, participation in the Honors Program (as it was called from 2006 – 2025) was transformational both academically and socially.  She said that it was, “exciting to be accepted into the inaugural class of the Honors Program! I was thrilled to be selected and loved being part of the program.”  She built strong connections with Honors Program faculty, including one (Dr. Daniel Vollaros) who got her involved in volunteering and mentoring.  She said that her volunteer experience with Read Aloud Chattanooga, “left a lasting impression on me, and helped inspire my journey to serve in the education sector of the Peace Corps.”

Coming to Atlanta from Arizona, the Honors Program helped build friendships in a new city and have turned into sustained relationships that she maintains to this day.  She reflected that, “the friendships and relationships that I formed during the class have only grown over time - I’ve stayed in touch with several friends who now work in Silicon Valley tech companies and gone to weddings of HP friends.” As a student athlete, Jing’s experience was a bit different from other Honors Program students.  She missed out on the residential experience of the program, as she lived in Woodruff Residence Hall with other swimmers, but she was still an active participant in a variety of activities and classes.  Jing attended events such as course rollout luncheons and field days with incoming first year students.  She also participated in the mentorship program and served as an ambassador for a variety of recruiting events such as Preview Georgia Tech, Women’s Receptions, Girls Night Out, and FUTURES. 

Participation in the Honors Program also enabled Jing to get the most out of her Georgia Tech experience.  She was a recipient of a Student Challenge Fund grant to participate in the Beijing and Singapore study abroad program, which had an impact on her professional development.  Jing said that the program allowed her to gain exposure to international business operations while taking ISYE major-specific courses.  Her impact and involvement on campus were wide, as she was a founding sister in Alpha Phi sorority, was a finalist for Ms. Georgia Tech, and conducted research on bio-inspired design in the Design Intelligence Lab.  Her research interest was fueled by Honors Program coursework on sustainable environmental and manufacturing systems and biologically inspired design.  The combination of these two courses built the foundation for her undergraduate research. She reflected on her experience, saying:

The GT Design Intelligence Lab fostered my lifelong curiosity for working in the human-machine interaction space and taught me to keep a user-centric mindset while considering sustainability impacts and design elements inspired by nature. In the 10+ years that I’ve worked at Accenture, I’ve always focused on emerging technology and innovation. The HP approach taught me to think outside the box, challenge the status quo to come up with more innovative ideas and how to create structure in new spaces. All of this has paved the foundation for my professional career, starting from shipping mobile apps and exploring new wearable products for enterprise clients, to diving into the Metaverse and more recently building products that accelerate cost efficiency and productivity with GenAI. 

In fall 2026, the John H. Martinson Honors Program will admit it’s 20th class, and Jing Li has some words to guide them.

Take advantage of everything the Honors Program offers! Not only the smaller sections of core classes, but really tap into the opportunities to expand your horizons by learning differently and gaining exposure to different cultures in the living and learning community. One of the biggest benefits that I remember of the HP was how it encouraged entrepreneurship - if you have an idea and want to ship it, you should challenge yourself to find a path to bring it to life! 

She shared the story of a fellow Honors Program classmate who was passionate about accessibility to biking for all, regardless of financial means. He pitched an idea about an on-campus bike-sharing program (long before the sharing economy was booming) and started a small-scale program running out of the Honors Program residence hall. This kind of innovative spirit that inspired Jing Li and her classmates continues today.  We are proud of her and all our alums and can’t wait to see where the next 20 years will take us!