Southwestern Community College’s Beta Eta Nu chapter of Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) held its Spring 2021 Induction Ceremony on Tuesday, April 20, 2021, at 5:30 p.m., in the Student Center gymnasium.
During the ceremony, 2020-21 officers were honored for their service and 2021-22 officers were inducted into their officer positions. Outgoing chapter officers included Jill Wallace of Greenfield, president; Tessa Powers of Creston, vice president; and alternative officers-VPs Riley Beard of Diagonal, Eric Desbois of Brooklin, Ontario, Canada, and Matt Rinehart of Creston. Incoming officers for the 2021-22 year include Chase Miner of Leon, president; Heylee Shields of Creston, vice president of fellowship; Thomas Esterhuyse of Paarl, Western Cape, South Africa, vice president of leadership; and Liberty Armstrong of Creston, vice president of service.
The guest speaker for the event was Cassidy Becker of Diagonal. Becker was a May 2019 graduate of Southwestern Community College. She is currently finishing her bachelor’s degree in elementary education at Northwest Missouri State University. During her time at Southwestern, Becker was the president of SWCC’s Beta Eta Nu chapter, as well as the Phi Theta Kappa Iowa Region vice president.
New members inducted for spring 2021 included Alena Allen of Osceola, Devin Baker of Creston, Shawna Baldwin of Red Oak, Robin Benkufsky of Ankeny, Harrisen Bevan of Leon, Christopher Blair of Dallas, TX, Evan Bruce of Creston, Nyle Buchanan of King George, VA, Karly Calvin of Creston, Jacob Cockson of Kansas City, MO, Austin Cole of Diagonal, Jessinda Davenport of Osceola, Jamison Detrick of Shenandoah, Jordan England of Lenox, Evan Escobar of Kent, Thomas Esterhuyse of Paarl, Western Cape, South Africa, Madeline Frey of Creston, Ashleigh Harrington of Council Bluffs, Scott Harris of Creston, Jensen Hayes of Osceola, Darian Heideman of Red Oak, Makenna Hudson of Lenox, Page Hudson of Afton, Kara Kinsella of Creston, Amber Lacina of Shannon City, Philip Mang of Windsor Heights, Riley McCall of Fontanelle, Catherine McDonald of Norwalk, Sebastian Medina of Creston, Taylor Miller of Afton, Sierra Myers of Creston, Will Newton of Mt. Ayr, Florence Omodayo of Dekalb, IL, Erendira Ornelas of Creston, Jarod Perez of Osceola, Caitlyn Porter of Des Moines, Vernae Ramoth of Ambler AK, Wiley Ray of Orient, Jordan Richards of Oak Grove, Taylor Seaton of Creston, Addison Shay of Tingley, Heylee Shields of Creston, Briel Storm of Derby, Nicole Vorhies of Stanton, Macy Wiley of Creston, and Hannah Wisniewski of Osceola.
Phi Theta Kappa International serves to recognize and encourage the academic achievement of two-year college students worldwide. To be eligible for membership, students must have a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or above.
Advisors for SWCC’s Phi Theta Kappa chapter are Jody Nedley-Newcomb, sociology instructor; Dr. Dan Platt, English instructor; and Justin Mann, mathematics instructor.
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Pictured above (L to R): Officers, advisors, and inductees in attendance included Jill Wallace, Tessa Powers, Dr. Dan Platt, Thomas Esterhuyse, Christopher Blair, Heylee Shields, Nyle Buchanan, Macy Wiley, Florence Omodayo, Briel Storm, Caitlyn Porter, Makenna Hudson, Liberty Armstrong, Jody Nedley-Newcomb, and Chase Miner.