Jackson State University was home to some of the best and brightest two-year college students in Mississippi and Louisiana through Saturday as the Phi Theta Kappa national honor society met on campus.
Nearly 200 two-year college students were expected to attend the two-day Mississippi/Louisiana Phi Theta Kappa 2014 Fall Regional Conference that started Friday, according to Paul A. Scott a two-year college student recruiter with the JSU Department of Community College Relations.
This is the first time that Jackson State has hosted the conference, said Scott. Only the highest achieving community college students are members of the honor society, the equivalent of the Phi Beta Kappa society for four-year schools. It is recognized as the official honor society for community colleges by the American Association of Community Colleges.
“We are hosting their regional meeting in an effort to attract academically talented transfer students to Jackson State University,” said Dr. Priscilla Slade, special assistant to the provost for community colleges.
The students will have an opportunity to visit JSU colleges and departments to discuss the many academic programs available upon graduation from their community colleges, she said.
“This is a great opportunity for us to recruit high-achieving students to Jackson State,” Scott said.
Membership in Phi Theta Kappa is highly prized by students and schools, requiring at least a 3.5 grade point average. Headquartered at the Universities Center in Jackson, the society has more than 2 million members in more than 1,250 chapters nationwide.
The program titled “Crossing the Social Frontier,” began Friday in the College of Business. It included a general session and a welcome to the JSU campus by Slade, Tai Shelby, coordinator of transfer programs, and Scott.
Meetings are expected to resume today (Saturday) and end later this afternoon.