Phi Theta Kappa - Honor Society

Nominations Open for USA TODAY's 2010 All-USA Community College Academic Team

McLean, Va. (October 1, 2009) - Nominations are now being accepted for USA TODAY's 20th annual All-USA Community College Academic Team. The annual recognition program, administered by Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and in cooperation with the American Association of Community Colleges, seeks to honor outstanding community college students who show intellectual rigor in their course of study, demonstrate academic/leadership/civic growth and who extend their community college education to better themselves, their schools and their communities.

The 20 students selected to the team will be featured in USA TODAY in April 2010. Team members will receive cash awards of $2,500 each from USA TODAY and medallions from Phi Theta Kappa.

In addition, Phi Theta Kappa will administer the Coca-Cola All-State Community College Academic Team and the New Century Scholars programs. Sponsored by the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation and the Coca Cola Foundation, nearly $450,000 will be awarded to an additional 350 other outstanding community college students. The top-scoring student in each state will be named a New Century Scholar and will receive a $2,000 stipend and medallion. Fifty Coca-Cola All-State Gold Scholars will receive $1,500 stipends, fifty silver scholars will receive $1,250 stipends and fifty bronze scholars will receive $1,000 stipends. An additional 150 students will be named Finalists and will receive $1,000 stipends

The All-USA Community College Academic Team is a merit award based on students' community college accomplishments. The centerpiece of the application form is the student's 500-word essay on his or her most outstanding intellectual community college endeavor, and how this activity was used to benefit the college or community.

Each college may nominate only two students per campus. All applicants must have a 3.5 GPA based on a minimum of 36 semester (or 48 quarter) college-level credits completed (or in progress during fall semester) at the time of application. In addition, 30 of those credits must have been completed at a community college within the last five years.

Students need not be members of Phi Theta Kappa to be eligible. Students should contact the office of the president of their community college for application information as this is a by-nomination only program. For application procedures, schools should contact Phi Theta Kappa at 601.984.3504, ext 3539 or 3560. Nominations must be received (not postmarked) on or before December 1, 2009. Final official transcripts reflecting applicants' fall grades and credits must be received no later than February 1, 2010.

Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, is the largest honor society in higher education with 1,250 chapters on 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.

Based in Washington, D.C., AACC is the primary advocacy organization for community colleges at the national level and works closely with directors of state offices to inform and to affect state policy. AACC represents almost 1,200 two-year, associate degree-granting institutions and more than 11 million students. Community colleges are the largest and fastest-growing sector of U.S. higher education, enrolling close to half (44 percent) of all U.S. undergraduates.

USA TODAY was founded in 1982 with a mission to serve as a forum for better understanding and unity to help make the USA truly one nation. Through its flagship newspaper and popular Web site, USA TODAY engages the national conversation and connects readers online through social media applications. USA TODAY, the nation's top-selling newspaper with a total average daily circulation of more than 2.1 million, and USATODAY.com, an award-winning newspaper Web site which launched in 1995, reach a combined 5.8 million readers daily. The USA TODAY news and information brand also includes: USA TODAY Education, USA TODAY LIVE, USA TODAY Mobile and USA TODAY Sports Weekly. USA TODAY is owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI).