By Sloane Barlow
Since she began working for the Honors College, Assistant Dean Bess German has been a constant source of comfort, advice, and friendship for students and faculty alike.
“As one of the longest serving members of the Honors College, Bess German has exhibited an unwavering level of dedication and passion for enhancing our mission of academic excellence,” said Honors College Interim Dean Glenn Chambers.
“We are fortunate to have had her in the college for 27 years and look forward to many more years to come,” Chambers said.
Finding a place at MSU
German’s story with the Honors College began after completing a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Kalamazoo College and a master’s in college student development from Bowling Green State University. She later pursued her doctoral degree in higher education at Michigan State University while working at the Honors College full-time.
She started working at the Honors College as its first-ever admissions counselor. After a few years she nearly left the Honors College, but her mentor and then-Dean of the Honors College Ronald Fisher stopped her.
“He told me, ‘This is the place for you. You do great work, and you should stay’,” German recalls Fisher telling her.
“Over the years, her responsibilities have expanded and evolved, but always remained focused on our students,” Fisher said.
German added a variety of Honors College roles over the years, including student affairs and external relations, before eventually moving up to her current position as assistant dean. She even stepped in to help with advising one summer.
“I think no one has had more impact in expanding and improving the Honors College over these years than Bess,” Fisher said. “She deserves our praise and thanks.”
German most recently represented the Honors College on the inaugural Spartan Bus Tour, a three-day journey along the west side of Michigan’s lower peninsula with MSU President Kevin M. Guskiewicz and a group of administrators and faculty.
Community in the Honors College
German has many roles and responsibilities to maintain, including admissions; diversity, equity, and inclusion; student affairs; and scholarships for incoming and newly admitted students. She also co-teaches a first-year seminar on social inequity with a community-engaged focus and advises several student organizations.
“I don’t think about this as a job so much – this is my life,” she continued. “This is meaningful to me because I get to connect with so many amazing students and people in this work.”
During her 27 years in the Honors College community, German has created valuable and lasting connections with students and faculty.
“Her dedication to students and commitment to their success is not limited to their time at MSU,” Chambers said. “Bess is often mentioned by alumni as an example of all that is right in the college, and many remember positively the ways she helped them on their respective academic journeys.”
Selena Martinez (‘22) is one such alumna.
During her time at the Honors College, Martinez served as a mentor in HC IMPACT, helped recruit new Honors students as a member of H-STAR, and founded the HC Mental Health Collaborative.
As a mentor throughout many of these experiences, German witnessed Martinez’s growth as an undergraduate student.
“Dr. Bess German is an inspiring leader and mentor at Michigan State University,” Martinez said. “Her commitment to student development and engagement, public outreach, and DEI efforts is invaluable. The MSU and Honors College community, as well as higher education, is fortunate to have her.”
Alumna Aya Abu-Zama (‘24) had a similar relationship with German as an inspiring mentor.
“When I think about those who made MSU truly a home of learning, growth, and support, I think of Dr. Bess German,” Abu-Zama said. “Since my very first day at MSU during HC IMPACT, she made the time and effort to get to not only get to know me, but to know my future goals and passions, and has guided me through getting where I wanted to be.”
Before graduating this past May, Abu-Zama served as president of the Honors College student organization MOSAIC, gained research experience in the Professorial Assistantship program, participated in HC IMPACT, and dedicated her time to volunteering at Lansing’s Refugee Development Center – roles inspired by German’s leadership and teachings in community engagement.
“Between myself and every single student, faculty, and staff member who has had the pleasure of working with Dr. German, it’s with confidence I say that she is pivotal in making the Honors College into the groundbreaking and inclusive space that it is,” Abu-Zama said.
“Whether it was during our Inclusive Excellence committee meetings, or on the ground during HC IMPACT service projects, I have been continuously inspired by her leadership, efforts to learn from everyone around her, and her passion for all the communities she steps into,” Abu-Zama said.
“Over the years, students have given so much to my life,” German said. “They’re passionate about what they’re doing, and it makes my job easy.”
A future in Campbell Hall
German has also helped promote the renovation of West Circle’s Campbell Hall into an Honors College living-learning community. The project is slated for completion by August 2025.
German recently pledged a gift to fund the hall’s south breakout room, which is dedicated for student use around group work and projects.
“It is one thing for a dean to be enthusiastic about an idea, and quite another when enthusiasm organically emerges among our faculty, students, and staff,” said former Honors College Dean Christopher P. Long in his speech at the Campbell Hall groundbreaking.
“From the beginning, the idea of transforming Campbell Hall into a living-learning community for Honors students had broad support,” Long continued. “Nothing, however, signaled this more powerfully and palpably to me than the decision of our own Bess German to fund one of the student breakout rooms.”
With her donation, German wishes to name the room in memory of her grandmother, Betty.
After dropping out of high school during the Great Depression, Betty worked full-time at a factory to support her family, abandoning her own college dreams. Although she never completed high school herself, Betty always prioritized the education of her daughter and granddaughter, both of whom have graduate degrees.
In honoring her grandmother’s legacy, German hopes a breakout room in Betty’s name will be a creative and innovative space for students to gather and further develop their higher educations.
Molly Brennan (‘82) and her husband William Devlin have also supported the Campbell Hall renovation, committing to one of the three student study rooms.
“Bess is the Magic Johnson of the Honors College: supremely excellent at what she does, a consummate team player, someone who elevates and makes those around her better, and someone who is always optimistic and happy,” Brennan said.
“Bess has made a significant impact and contribution to so many of those who are lucky enough to have come into her orbit, and I count myself one of them,” she continued.
Click here to learn more about the Campbell Hall renovation and how to get involved.