Greetings, Fellow Members!
I'd like to say, “Hello!” and I hope your semester has been going well so far. I also would like to share with you about our two projects that we, as a chapter, get to work on together.
The first project is our College Project, which we have actually finished for this semester. A College Project is one of the goals for a Phi Theta Kappan Chapter to accomplish on its journey to being an active, 5-star chapter. It is a project which allows the members to gain better knowledge about their college as well as learn to collaborate with college faculty to improve an important matter around their college campus.
This past spring semester our chapter met with several faculty members. The President of the college, Dr. Dreith, who had expressed concern about the college's completion rate and students' math completion, was the first person we spoke with. After Dr. Dreith expressed math as one of his main concerns, we then decided to meet with the faculty of the math department, Dr. Giri and Mr. Scott Elliott, to see how we could help students complete their math courses and thus be on their way towards completing their degree. The conclusion of our meetings was that all the information and assistance for students was already made available, but very few to no students were taking advantage of the many resources available.
For our 2013 College Project, the chapter decided that although we would be unable to personally make students seek the help they need, we could increase the students' awareness of these resources in a different way that is both informative and from a student perspective. We achieved this goal by making a short video that promoted the Student Success Center's many useful tools to succeed, such as the Math Help room and free tutoring. We made the video through the perspective of an average student in hopes that it would remind students that these aids are for everyone. The video can be seen at: http://goo.gl/esDP6P
Our second project is our Honors in Action Project. The Honors in Action project's purpose, as it says online at http://www.ptk.org/get-involved/honors-in-action, is to “foster a stimulating environment for intellectual growth and challenge,” as well as “create opportunities for leadership and learning as leaders through service and advocacy.” To put it simply, we get to pick a theme and a question from the many possibilities that Phi Theta Kappa presents every year, research that question, decide what sort of action we would like to do with all of our research, and do the action.
This year for our theme and topic we chose: Theme 6: “Food Fight!: Competition and Food” Question #9: “How do guidelines, such as the USDA’s Food Pyramid and school lunch programs compete with or match parental/community food standards and/or realities?”
This past Wednesday, September 4th, several members were able to brainstorm this topic and begin researching more about it. September is our “Research Month,” so if you have any questions or would like more information as to how you can be a part of this project, please email [email protected], or even myself, personally, at [email protected]. Either way, your question will be answered and more information will be given! Also, for a heads up, September is designated for researching the topic, October will be designated for focusing the research to choose an action, and November/December will be the month we get to perform that action.
I'd like to remind you all that our projects and the many other things that we do like fundraisers and mini-projects, may be done at the participation level that YOU and your schedule are able to handle. You do not have to participate in anything. However, I strongly encourage that if you have any spare time, that you should get involved with our chapter and the Phi Theta Kappa organization. The leadership and social skills you're able to gain and the new friends you're able to make is such a great opportunity for all members. I speak from experience when I say that it has been some of the best fun and learning experience so far in my life.
We have a great semester ahead of us and I hope that we get to see you join us on our adventures.
Take care and until next time,
Chapter President, Anna Buetow
I'd like to say, “Hello!” and I hope your semester has been going well so far. I also would like to share with you about our two projects that we, as a chapter, get to work on together.
The first project is our College Project, which we have actually finished for this semester. A College Project is one of the goals for a Phi Theta Kappan Chapter to accomplish on its journey to being an active, 5-star chapter. It is a project which allows the members to gain better knowledge about their college as well as learn to collaborate with college faculty to improve an important matter around their college campus.
This past spring semester our chapter met with several faculty members. The President of the college, Dr. Dreith, who had expressed concern about the college's completion rate and students' math completion, was the first person we spoke with. After Dr. Dreith expressed math as one of his main concerns, we then decided to meet with the faculty of the math department, Dr. Giri and Mr. Scott Elliott, to see how we could help students complete their math courses and thus be on their way towards completing their degree. The conclusion of our meetings was that all the information and assistance for students was already made available, but very few to no students were taking advantage of the many resources available.
For our 2013 College Project, the chapter decided that although we would be unable to personally make students seek the help they need, we could increase the students' awareness of these resources in a different way that is both informative and from a student perspective. We achieved this goal by making a short video that promoted the Student Success Center's many useful tools to succeed, such as the Math Help room and free tutoring. We made the video through the perspective of an average student in hopes that it would remind students that these aids are for everyone. The video can be seen at: http://goo.gl/esDP6P
Our second project is our Honors in Action Project. The Honors in Action project's purpose, as it says online at http://www.ptk.org/get-involved/honors-in-action, is to “foster a stimulating environment for intellectual growth and challenge,” as well as “create opportunities for leadership and learning as leaders through service and advocacy.” To put it simply, we get to pick a theme and a question from the many possibilities that Phi Theta Kappa presents every year, research that question, decide what sort of action we would like to do with all of our research, and do the action.
This year for our theme and topic we chose: Theme 6: “Food Fight!: Competition and Food” Question #9: “How do guidelines, such as the USDA’s Food Pyramid and school lunch programs compete with or match parental/community food standards and/or realities?”
This past Wednesday, September 4th, several members were able to brainstorm this topic and begin researching more about it. September is our “Research Month,” so if you have any questions or would like more information as to how you can be a part of this project, please email [email protected], or even myself, personally, at [email protected]. Either way, your question will be answered and more information will be given! Also, for a heads up, September is designated for researching the topic, October will be designated for focusing the research to choose an action, and November/December will be the month we get to perform that action.
I'd like to remind you all that our projects and the many other things that we do like fundraisers and mini-projects, may be done at the participation level that YOU and your schedule are able to handle. You do not have to participate in anything. However, I strongly encourage that if you have any spare time, that you should get involved with our chapter and the Phi Theta Kappa organization. The leadership and social skills you're able to gain and the new friends you're able to make is such a great opportunity for all members. I speak from experience when I say that it has been some of the best fun and learning experience so far in my life.
We have a great semester ahead of us and I hope that we get to see you join us on our adventures.
Take care and until next time,
Chapter President, Anna Buetow