UK Phi Kappa Phi Chapter's Annual Induction is Tonight
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Nov. 9, 2015) — The University of Kentucky Chapter of The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi will induct a total of 46 new members this evening in ceremonies at the William T. Young Library's UK Athletics Auditorium.
Forty-two students together with four faculty and community honorees will be welcomed into the nation's oldest and most selective all-discipline honor society. The event begins at 7 p.m. and will be followed by a reception next door in the UK Alumni Association Gallery for the new initiates together with family and friends.
The faculty and community inductees are:
· Roszalyn Akins, an educator in Fayette County Schools for more than 30 years and dean of students at Carter G. Woodson Academy.
· Sonja Feist-Price, assistant provost for faculty affairs at UK and coordinator for the Kentucky ACE Network for Women Leaders in Higher Education.
· Lawrence Prybil, the Norton Professor in Healthcare Leadership at UK's College of Public Health.
· Buck Ryan, associate professor of journalism and director of the Citizen Kentucky Project at UK's Scripps Howard First Amendment Center.
The mission of Phi Kappa Phi, which was founded in 1897, is "to recognize and promote academic excellence in all fields of higher education and to engage the community of scholars in service to others."
Membership is strictly determined by the standards set forth in the society’s bylaws. Juniors must be in the top 7.5 percent of their class, seniors in the top 10 percent of their class, and graduate students in the top 10 percent of their class.
The characteristic of Phi Kappa Phi that makes it unique among the leading honor societies is its policy of electing undergraduate and graduate members from all schools, divisions, or departments of the institution. Faculty, professional staff, alumni and community members who have achieved scholarly distinction also may qualify.
Strong participation by members in campus and national activities over the past year resulted in UK's PKP Chapter being named a 2015 Chapter of Excellence by the national organization. This is the third time the UK chapter, in only its seventh year of existence after being chartered in the spring of 2009, has received the 'excellence' distinction. The chapter has twice earned Chapter of Merit designation, as well.
The most recent example of the UK chapter's rapid rise to prominence among the more than 300 chapters across the country is the awarding of a competitive PKP fellowhsip worth $5,000 to May 2015 UK graduate Christina Zeidan, a double major in political science and anthropology at the university who is now studying law at Emory University in Atlanta.
History of University of Kentucky Chapter of Phi Kappa Phi Award Recipients
Fellowship
2015 Christina Zeidan
2014 Dominique Luster
2012 Taylor Lloyd
2011 Jenna Brashear
Study Abroad Grant
2012 Brittany Kidwell
Love of Learning Award
2014 Sarah Ehrensberger
2013 Demetrius Abshire
Literacy Grant
2012 Heather Davis
Nationally, Phi Kappa Phi's robust award programs give more than $1 million each biennium to qualifying students and members through fellowships, undergraduate study abroad grants, grants for literacy initiatives, and member and chapter awards. To learn more about these programs, visit www.PhiKappaPhi.org/Awards.
"The University of Kentucky Chapter of The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi continues to distinguish itself nationally," said UK Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor Frank Ettensohn, president of PKP on the UK campus. "The recognition received this year is a credit to the exceptional women and men who have become active members of the UK chapter."
For more information on the UK Chapter of Phi Kappa Phi, go to http://www.uky.edu/academy/phi-kappa-phi, or visit www.PhiKappaPhi.org.
Phi Kappa Phi is supported by The Chellgren Center which is part of the Academy for Undergraduate Excellence within the Division of Undergraduate Education at UK.
MEDIA CONTACT: Carl Nathe, 859-257-3200; carl.nathe@uky.edu.