Citrus College earns multiple accolades from honor society
Citrus College's Beta Nu Eta chapter of Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) continued its streak of excellence with an extraordinary showing at the 2022 Nevada/California PTK Regional Spring Convention.
In all, Beta Nu Eta took home 12 awards. A handful of Citrus College students, co-advisers and staff were honored too.
Some of the group's achievements included being selected as one of the top three PTK chapters in the region and receiving five-stars, the highest ranking a chapter can receive.
Beta Nu Eta also received first place in the Honors in Action category for its research and service project on the theme of "Expressions of Truth." In addition, the chapter earned third place for a recent service project, which involved working with Superintendent/President Schulz and the college's water polo teams to spruce up the Veterans Success Center garden.
Other honors included Citrus College students Jessie San receiving a Literary Award and Veronica Rincon being recognized in the PTK meme contest.
Ms. San was also elected president of the PTK Nevada/California region. In this role, she will help coordinate conventions and network with fellow PTK chapters.
"Ms. San is resilient and radiant, and it was no surprise that everyone at the San Diego conference favored her as the new regional president," said Citrus College instructor and Beta Nu Eta co-advisor Areej Qasqas.
During the convention, Olivia Canales, administrative clerk III in the honors transfer program, earned a faculty/staff recognition award for outstanding service to Beta Nu Eta. She and her family were hosted at a dinner in San Diego by PTK alumni and she was honored on stage.
"The heart of the chapter, Ms. Canales, kept the chapter moving and helped new members navigate through PTK membership," Ms. Qasqas said. "She takes care of us, and we hope that we showed her how much she means to us."
Next month, Citrus College instructor Brian Waddington will also be recognized for his work as a PTK co-advisor.
Reflecting on the awards, Mr. Waddington praised the students for their strong academic skills, grit and determination.
"It is really nice to see the camaraderie that develops among them, and to see the students be recognized for their efforts and achieve a level of success that they might not have thought possible when enrolling at Citrus College," Mr. Waddington said.
This article originally appeared in the April 2022 edition of the Citrus View.