Phi Theta Kappa (PTK), the international honor society for two-year colleges, is accepting applications from students interested in joining.
The induction ceremony for Nu Pi, the Sinclair Chapter of PTK, for this quarter will be held on Feb. 9 in the Auditorium in Building 12 at 7 p.m., and all students are welcome to attend. To be inducted at the ceremony, all application materials must be in by Feb 9.
In order to be eligible for membership, a Sinclair student must have a 3.5 grade point average and must have completed at least 15 credit hours (excluding DEV and ESL credits), according to the group’s Sinclair website. There is a one-time fee of $75 dollars, after which a student will always be a member as long as they maintain the minimum GPA and remain a member in good standing.
“You can be as involved or uninvolved as you want, but there are a lot of benefits to being a member of Nu Pi,” says Amy Cotterman, a current co-president of Nu Pi, Sinclair’s Phi Theta Kappa chapter. Cotterman works with Janae Reynolds, the other co-president, to run the Sinclair chapter.
The honor society offers internal scholarships (one $450, two $200 and one $150 in Fall, Winter and Spring) and many universities offer transfer scholarships to Phi Theta Kappa members worth more than $36 million, according to the website. Members who earn their associates degree will receive a gold seal on their diplomas, and can wear a special blue and gold cord, stole and gold tassels of the society at graduation.
“When you’re a member of Phi Theta kappa, you really learn some things about how Sinclair is run, so you have an opportunity to get involved with the school at a deeper level,” says Cotterman, “I think the most important thing is that we’re involved, and we’re here.”
Cotterman says that the group works very closely with the President’s office. Last quarter, they worked with the office to do surveys for the Completion by Design project, an initiative supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The group is also active in Relay for Life and several other service projects throughout the year.
“It really gives you the impetus to keep your grades up, gives you a reason to maintain your grade level, gives you the support you need,” says Jessie Thatcher, Nu Pi’s co-vice president of publicity. “Sometimes when you’re a non-traditional student and you come to Sinclair, you feel a little left out of the program…and this way you meet people, you get involved in activities, and you become a member of the community, which is really cool.”
Nu Pi at Sinclair was the first Phi Theta Kappa chapter in Ohio, and the chapter has two officers at the regional level, according to Cotterman.
“Sinclair has kind of always been the trailblazer for Phi Theta Kappa in the state of Ohio,” says Cotterman. “You can really grow as a person and as a professional at a state and national level and hone your leadership skills and build your network.”
For more information about applying, see Tracy Robbins in Building 10 Room 339 or call at 512-2517.