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By Kathy Hayes
Phi Theta Kappa’s primary mission can be summed up in two words...Scholarship First. To fulfill this mission, local chapters must effectively communicate the benefits of membership to eligible students on their campus. This fundamental objective is encouraged through the Society’s Pinnacle Scholarship Award Program,designed to reward chapters and regions for their excellence in membership recruitment. The Program...by the Numbers Chapters that increase their membership by 10 percent over the previous year, or induct 90 percent of eligible students, will receive a $100 Pinnacle Scholarship and certificate of achievement during their regional awards ceremony. Regions that increase their membership by 10 percent will receive a $500 Pinnacle Scholarship and a certificate at the International Convention. Members must be inducted and reported between January 1-December 31 every year. At press time, more than 500 chapters had enrolled in the Pinnacle Scholarship Award Program, and 84 of these chapters had already earned the Pinnacle Scholarship Award. Advisors and officers from some of these successful chapters shared what strategies were used to increase their membership and how this increase has affected their chapter. Your Chapter Benefits by Increasing Membership The Phi Theta Kappa chapter at University of Cincinnati in Cincinnati, Ohio, is increasing membership by showcasing Phi Theta Kappa in all student-related orientations and sending quarterly letters to students who are eligible for membership. Increasing their membership has energized the chapter, says advisor Marjorie Pollitt. “The sharing of the workload is a definite benefit and also the sharing of ideas and the diversity of the group is great.” Making Phi Theta Kappa more visible on campus helped the chapter at Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix, Arizona, increase their membership and reach their Pinnacle goal by the end of April. The chapter employed two strategies that helped build awareness. During their college’s Club Fair Week, the chapter sponsored a bake sale and made sure the booth had a member or advisor there at all times to answer questions and help recruit new members. The chapter also added faculty members to their mailing list to keep them informed of their activities. The results of an increase in membership have been outstanding. “We can accomplish more things in a shorter period of time,” said chapter president Trisha McCurdy. “Teamwork is essential, and it’s nice to have a large group to work with.” Your Community Benefits by Increasing Membership Michael Eppards, chapter advisor at Ivy Tech State College in Muncie, Indiana, can attest to the fact that the community is also a beneficiary of increased membership. “The chapter has definitely become more active from an increase in membership as new members are already associated with or are already involved with different entities within the community and have helped to increase our community contacts along with our community service,” says Eppards. “We as a chapter have completed most of our goals in the first few months of activities to meet our Five Star chapter goal.” Regions Are In The Race, Too! The New Mexico and Kentucky Regions are the first regions to reach 100 percent participation among their chapters in the Pinnacle Scholarship Award Program. “Upon returning from the International Convention in Denver, we decided to emphasize the importance of the Pinnacle Program to all of our chapters,” said New Mexico Regional President David Rodrigues.“My fellow regional officers and I took the lead in making sure all the region’s advisors and officers understood the benefit of the $100 scholarship that would be awarded to each chapter that met the challenge. We knew this to be a great incentive to increase membership throughout our state. Every chapter was receptive and signed up for the program before the fall semester began.” Scholarship Dollars with No Strings Attached... Chapters and regions will decide how best to use their scholarship awards. According to Dale Hill, advisor of the chapter at Gadsden State Community College in Gadsden, Alabama, their members have not been able to attend an International Convention in years. Their $100 scholarship will be used to defray costs of attending the Nashville Convention next April. To receive an award, chapters must be officially enrolled in The Pinnacle Scholarship Award Program. Chapter advisors or officers may enroll their chapters online at www.ptk.org/pinnacle/. Questions about the Pinnacle Program? Contact Data Manager Becky Medlock or 601.957.2241, ext. 523.
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