Phi Theta Kappa Advisors Gain Five-Star Status

Two faculty advisors at the University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton’s Beta Eta Sigma chapter of Phi Theta Kappa, an international honor society of community and junior colleges, recently completed all levels of the society’s Five Star Advisor Plan.

Beta Eta Signma advisors (L to R): Kara Jones, Mathew Herrman, and Spring McCarthy

UACCM Phi Theta Kappa advisors Mat Herrman and Kara Jones were invited to the honor society’s annual convention in April 2019 at Orlando, Florida. They will receive a certificate and a pin in honor of this achievement.

“Beta Eta Sigma is celebrating the 20^th anniversary of its charter this year,” Herrman said. “We average 75 members on campus each semester. Thanks in part to the efforts of our leadership team we recruit new members each semester at double the national average.”

The new status comes after UACCM’s chapter received its fourth star in September 2018. Among its activities needed to reach the highest level, Herrman and Jones were active in the society’s regional level. They participated in PTK’s Leadership Conference in Hot Springs, Arkansas, where UACCM chapter members met other students from Arkansas and Oklahoma, participated in discussions about leadership, and explored civic issues. In October, Herrman was elected to serve as vice president of the Oklahoma-Arkansas Regional Association of Chapter Advisors, which provides guidance and assistance for regional events, chapter advisors, and the regional coordinator.

“One of the chief reasons I continue to commit to our chapter is because of the persistence toward our best that this organization promotes,” Herrman said. “I’ve begun my seventh year advising this chapter, and from those years, I’ve learned that there is much to learn about continued excellence.”

The mission statement of Phi Theta Kappa is “to recognize academic achievement of college students and to provide opportunities for them to grow as scholars and leaders.” To become a member, students must have completed at least 12 hours of coursework that may be applied to an associate degree while maintaining at least a 3.5 GPA.