SANFORD - Academic achievement and service were celebrated March 10 as Central Carolina Community College' Beta Sigma Phi Chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society held its spring induction ceremony.
Phi Theta Kappa is the largest honor society in American higher education with more than two million members and 1,200 chapters. In 1929, the American Association of Community Colleges recognized PTK as the official honor society for two-year colleges. The CCCC chapter sets a higher standard for membership eligibility than the national organization: a 3.7 grade point average rather than the 3.5 GPA that national requires.
CCCC Chatham County Provost Mark Hall was the speaker for the event held at the Dennis A. Wicker Civic Center. Hall, who has served as a Chapter Advisor along with Mike Neal since the CCCC chapter began in 2010, is turning over his Chapter Advisor duties to Chemistry Instructor Dr. Rodney Powell.
"Thus far, it has been your scholarship that has earned you membership into Phi Theta Kappa. This scholarship should continue, but it will also be your leadership, service, and fellowship that will distinguish you as you move forward in your studies, in your careers, and in your communities," said Hall.
"As Phi Theta Kappa members, you have the opportunity to lead. Whether or not you know it, you are already leaders by example. You model to your classmates, to your friends, to your families, and to your children the behaviors and attitudes that lead to academic success. As part of this chapter, you can develop your leadership through the initiation, coordination, and execution of projects."
Hall told the inductees that as Phi Theta Kappa members, they have the capacity to serve. "When you sacrifice your time and utilize your talents to help others, you find purpose and meaning," he said. "As Charles Dickens stated, 'No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another.' This statement is an excellent way to define service -- lightening one another's burdens."
Hall added that if members embrace and embody the hallmarks of Phi Theta Kappa, they will benefit more from their membership in this honor society than if they continue only in scholarship.
"This induction should be just the beginning of your involvement with Phi Theta Kappa," said Hall. "We encourage all of you to take advantage of the honor you have been given and to use Phi Theta Kappa as the means to develop leadership while serving others."
Phi Theta Kappa is composed of Greek words symbolizing wisdom, aspiration and purity. A white rose lay on the table, symbolizing purity, beauty of life, and intellectual associations, while the oak and laurel leaves on the PTK emblem represent stability, character, achievement, and success.
Each of the inductees recited the Oath of Membership to uphold the standards of Phi Theta Kappa and signed their name in the membership book. Chapter Co-Advisor Mike Neal, CCCC Student Activities and Athletic Director, officially welcomed them into the society.
CCCC had its own honor society, Alpha Theta Tau, from 1986 until the chartering of the Phi Theta Kappa chapter in 2010. The idea for joining PTK was brought to the college when Dr. T.E. Marchant became president in 2008.
In its few years of existence, the college's Phi Beta Sigma Chapter has garnered a number of prestigious recognitions from PTK. These include the Five-Star ranking -- the highest ranking a chapter can receive for excellence, and awards at regional PTK conferences. It has also reached out to the community with service projects, such as assisting food banks and shelters.
The 2015 spring inductees are:
Angier: Dustin Mendoza, Katherine Warren
Bear Creek: Joanie Adcock, Lisa Goodman, Morgan Saunders
Belhaven: Henry Nimons
Broadway: Leonardo Cruz, Kelsea Dieser
Buies Creek: Steven Ennis
Cameron: Stephanie Finchum, Pamela Olive, Amy Strum, John Sullivan
Cary: David Pope
Chapel Hill: Douglas Amrhein, Elizabeth Bedford, Kevin Cottingham, James Johnson, Christopher Mullen, Isaac Phillips, Ella Wilson
Clayton: Angela Mattison
Dunn: Heather Stewart
Erwin: Justin Leville, Anita Oleson
Fayetteville: Briana Autry, Sydney Johnson, Zachary Lutes
Fuquay-Varina: Bailey Allen, Jennifer Duffany, Caroline Elliott, Toni McNeill, Gwendolyn Thornton, Eveann Ward
Holly Springs: Landis Johnson
Kernersville: Kristin Alderin-Fleagle
Lillington: Dominique Anderson, Jamie Fitzgerald, Renada Michelle Hendon, Samantha Hernan, Sarah Shannon-Mohamed
Pittsboro: Robert Gibson, Kaleb Janson, Philip Tyndall
Raleigh: Megan Blair, Diane Hampshire, Alexandra Marshall
Sanford: Jason Aguilar, Jameelah Alexander, Noemi Arias, Carson Calcutt, Alex Daniels, Lashawn Dubose, Teresa Estrada, Gabrielle Godfrey, Jamie Guillergan, Crystal Hatch, Lacey Kuenzler, Pamela Lee, Alejandro Loredo Sarmiento, Lorena Martinez, Eryn McNeil, Payton Millikin, Dhalia Mohamed, Jessica Moretz, Maurice Owen, Shelley Parker, Audrey Poe, Sydney Quinn, Hunter Riggins, Gregory Rodgers, Allen Roth, Rosser Sapp, Terrance Simpson, Elizabeth Street, Earl Vaughan-Williams, Michael Wallace, Jan Whitton, Meagan Williams, Belinda Woodall, David Worswick
Siler City: Daniel Harrison
Spring Lake: Michael Evans
Willow Springs: Wendy Spears
Chapter officers are: President Kevin Cottingham, Vice President Leonardo Cruz, Public Relations Secretary Marcela Hernandez, Recording Secretary Sarah Shannon Mohamed, and Treasurer Linda Wilkinson.
For more information about Phi Theta Kappa at CCCC, visit the college's Web site, www.cccc.edu, click on "A-Z Index," then "P" for "Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society."
Central Carolina Community College inducted new members into its Beta Sigma Phi Chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society at a ceremony March 10 in the Dennis A. Wicker Civic Center in Sanford. PTK is the official honor society for two-year colleges and the largest honor society in American higher education.
Dr. Rodney Powell (right), CCCC's Phi Theta Kappa Chapter Advisor, installs new officers during the organization's induction ceremony on March 10 at the Dennis A. Wicker Civic Center in Sanford.
Mark Hall (left), Central Carolina Community College Chatham County Provost, was the speaker for the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society induction ceremony held March 10 at the Dennis A. Wicker Civic Center in Sanford. Pictured with Hall is Dr. Rodney Powell (right), who succeeds Hall as CCCC's Phi Theta Kappa Co-Advisor along with Student Activities and Athletic Director Mike Neal.