NW-SCC honor society wins awards
Out of 17 awards Northwest-Shoals Community College campuses won at the 2018 Phi Theta Kappa Alabama Regional Convention, the Phil Campbell campus’ Alpha Zeta Iota Chapter received nine.
Awards include the Continued Excellence Award, Distinguished Chapter Officer Team Award, Distinguished Honors in Action Project Award, Distinguished Honors in Action Theme Award, Distinguished Chapter Member Award (Leah Gunderman), First Alternate Most Distinguished Chapter Award, Five-Star Competitive Edge Chapter Officer Awards, Five-Star Chapter Award and the Reach Award for increasing membership.
“We have a great group this year, and I’m excited to take them to the international convention in Kansas City,” adviser Rachel Trapp said.
The Phi Theta Kappa International Convention will be April 19-21, in Kansas City, Mo. Officer Shirley Acosta said she is excited for the international convention because it will be the 100th in PTK history.
“Last year’s was in Nashville and was a lot of fun, but this one is supposed to be even bigger,” Acosta said.
Trapp said last year their chapter placed eighth in the nation, and she said she is hoping they will do just as well or better this year.
For their Honors in Action awards, students completed a months-long Honors in Action Project. Acosta explained the project focused on the First Amendment on campus. Students had to collect eight legitimate sources, conduct interviews and answer pages of questions that were submitted.
“A lot of work and research went into it. We started in June and turned it in in January,” Acosta said.
Students also held a forum that Melissa Harris, Alabama regional officer for District 1, said was informative. It dealt with what people can and cannot say and who sets those rules. Trapp said the focus was on academic freedom.
Their College Project was another important activity. Its focus was on getting students to commit to completing their degree at NW-SCC. Peer-to-peer on-campus tutoring is one asset the chapter has introduced to help students with their studies.
“Retention is the main focus of the college project. It is especially helpful for freshmen,” Acosta said.
The chapter received nine graduation stoles for increasing their membership by nine (25 percent) and placing third in the state of Alabama for the Reach Award.
Officers Lauren Belcher, Acosta, Luke Stanford and Josh Pinkard each received a 5-Star Competitive Edge Award, which Trapp said is for the lessons they completed in areas like communication, their résumés and writing.
For the members and the advisers, it’s not all about the awards. Harris, who is a recent inductee, said being in Phi Theta Kappa has enhanced her college experience.
“I just came here for a degree, and now I’m involved in this. I love it. It’s a learning process, but I’m very much looking forward to being a regional officer,” Harris said.
Trapp, who has been an adviser for several years now, said she loves the organization, getting to work with the students and the opportunities she has had since being involved with the society.
