Two Phi Theta Kappa Advisors Receive Humanities Honors

JACKSON, MS - Phi Theta Kappa chapter advisors, Ginny Warren-Miller of Pearl River Community College and Dr. Ray Harris of Northeast Mississippi Community College, were honored recently with the Humanities Teacher Award presented to them by the Mississippi Humanities Council.

The Mississippi Humanities Council sponsors, supports and conducts a wide range of programs designed to promote understanding of cultural heritage, encourage public discourse and strengthen a sense of community.

The council celebrates Arts and Humanities Month in October by recognizing the talents of 32 Mississippi humanities educators, each representing an academic institution in the state. Nominated by their academic institution, the selected honorees present a public lecture on a topic in their field and receive a $500 stipend.

"We applaud the Mississippi's Humanities Council for recognizing outstanding scholarship in the humanities produced by university and community college humanities faculty, in particular that of Phi Theta Kappa advisors Ginny Warren-Miller and Dr. Ray Harris," said Phi Theta Kappa Executive Director Rod Risley.

Warren-Miller, a psychology instructor at Pearl River Community College, has served as a Phi Theta Kappa advisor intermittently for 10 years. In 2006, she was a Faculty Scholar and a group facilitator at Phi Theta Kappa's Honors Institute at the University of Delaware. Miller's public lecture was "A Sensational Journey to Healing, Hope and Wholeness."

"Being selected as Humanities Teacher of the Year for Pearl River Community College was such an honor for me. It's a very special when the work you love is validated by others," said Warren-Miller. "And being an advisor for Phi Theta Kappa has afforded me the forum to find deep meaning and purpose in my work inside and outside the classroom. I am grateful," she continued.

Warren-Miller has taught at Pearl River Community College for 12 years. She received her bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Southern Mississippi and is licensed by the Mississippi State Board for Licensed Professional Counselors.

"Ginny Warren-Miller is an extremely talented teacher. Perhaps her greatest attribute is the fact that she truly cares about the success of her students. She is a thoughtful, caring and concerned professional," said Pearl River Community College President Dr. William Lewis.

Dr. Harris, a music instructor at Northeast Mississippi Community College, has served Phi Theta Kappa as an advisor for five years. His public lecture was "Sergeant Schumann Leads the Charge to Conquer the Philistines" and included a piano performance of Robert Schumann's Scenes from Childhood, Op. 15.

"I am extremely flattered to have been chosen as the Humanities Teacher of the Year at Northeast Mississippi Community College. It is a very distinct honor to be selected for this award by a group of my Northeast colleagues who make up the Cultural Arts Committee," said Dr. Harris.

Dr. Harris has served as an instructor in the Division of Fine Arts at Northeast Mississippi Community College for 12 years. He received his bachelor's and master's degrees from Mississippi State University and a doctoral degree from Louisiana State University. Dr. Harris is a member of the Memphis Chapter of the American Guild of Organists and the Music Teachers National Association. He currently serves as Vice President for Public Relations for the Mississippi Music Teachers Association and is editor of the organization's newsletter, "The Mississippi Music Teacher."

"Dr. Ray Harris is a talented musician, a great classroom teacher and an excellent mentor for the students of Northeast Mississippi Community College. He is engaged in their educational lives and their civic lives as part of Phi Theta Kappa. I do not know of a better example of a person who uses his talents to improve the futures of other people," said Northeast Mississippi Community College President Dr. Johnny Allen.

Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society, headquartered in Jackson, is the largest honor society in American higher education with 1,200 chapters on two-year and community college campuses in all 50 of the United States, Canada, Germany, the Republic of Palau, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, the British Virgin Islands, the United Arab Emirates and U.S. territorial possessions. More than two million students have been inducted since its founding in 1918, with approximately 100,000 students inducted annually.