Ford Pledges $50,000 to Hites Transfer Scholarship Challenge
The Ford Motor Company has pledged $50,000 to kick off the Hites Transfer
Scholarship Challenge. During Phi Theta Kappa's recent International
Convention, Ford's Crystal Greene accepted the Alliance for Educational
Excellence Award, presented to the Ford College Student Purchase Program.
In her acceptance speech she announced the $50,000 pledge.
"Ford
has once again shown their commitment to community colleges and higher
education," said Phi Theta Kappa Executive Director Rod A. Risley. "We
were pleased to recognize their past contributions through the Alliance
for Educational Excellence Award, and we were totally surprised - and totally
thrilled - to hear Ms. Greene's announcement of their generous contribution
to the Hites Scholarship Challenge."
The Hites Family Community
College Scholarship Foundation of St. Louis, Missouri, has offered to
help establish a $1 million transfer scholarship endowment for Phi Theta
Kappa, based on an almost 2-1 match. Phi Theta Kappa has been challenged
to raise $350,000, which will be matched almost 2-1 by the Hites Family Foundation
to create the $1 million endowment.
The Hites Challenge was
announced by Executive Director Risley just before Board Chair Kip Johnson
presented the Alliance for Educational Excellence Award, Phi Theta Kappa's
highest honor for foundations, organizations and associations. Greene
is Sponsorships and Alliance Marketing Manager.
In making
the presentation, Johnson thanked the Ford College Student Purchase Program
for providing financial assistance to Project Graduation, Phi Theta Kappa's
civic engagement initiative that uses college commencements as a vehicle
to collect non-perishable food items and books for community service agencies.
"Since
2002, Ford and Phi Theta Kappa have worked together to battle the societal
issues of hunger and illiteracy," Johnson said, citing collections of
approximately 535,000 food items and 410,000 books.
"Ford
has supported Phi Theta Kappa members and community college students in
their efforts to become engaged citizens, and reinforced the value of service
- teaching our members that as scholars and leaders, they have a responsibility
to improve their communities," Johnson said.
Contributions
to the Hites Scholarship Challenge from Convention attendees and other
sources to date include pledges and donations exceeding $130,000, towards
the $350,000 goal. For information about the Hites Challenge and donations
to the Challenge and the 1918 Club, celebrating Phi Theta Kappa's 90th anniversary,
contact Director of Institutional Advancement Dr.
Nancy Rieves at 1.800.946.9995, ext. 3537.
Ford Motor
Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich.,
manufactures or distributes automobiles in 200 markets across six continents.
The company's core and affiliated automotive brands include Ford, Jaguar,
Land Rover, Lincoln, Mercury, Volvo and Mazda.
The Ford College
Student Purchase Program provides current college and trade school students,
recent grads and graduate students with an exclusive $500 bonus cash offer
toward the purchase or lease of an eligible new Ford, Lincoln or Mercury
vehicle. This special student offer may be combined with other compatible
incentives on the vehicle selected. For more information about the Ford
College Student Purchase Program, visit the official site at www.FordDrivesU.com.
Phi
Theta Kappa International Honor Society, headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi,
is the largest honor society in American higher education with 1,250 chapters
on two-year and community college campuses in all 50 of the United States,
Canada, Germany, the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands,
the Federated States of 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.
