SMC’s Phi Theta Kappa chapter achieves highest national honor

Faculty Advisors Welch and Kithcart Nominated for National Award

Leigh Thomas

Contributing Writer

The Spartanburg Methodist College chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa honor society has achieved a historic milestone, earning Five Star status – the organization’s highest national honor – for the first time the College’s history. Faculty advisors Dr. Kristen Welch and Dr. Maria Kithcart have also been nominated for the Distinguished Chapter Advisor Team Award.

Phi Theta Kappa recognizes academic achievement of college students and provides opportunities for them to grow academically and professionally. The criteria for joining Phi Theta Kappa at SMC matches the national standards of 12 credit hours completed and 3.0 GPA.

What Five Star Status Means

Five Star status recognizes commitment to excellence, leadership, and community service. To achieve it, a chapter must complete five levels of engagement during a 12-month period: member outreach, chapter activities, advisor training, a College Project, and an Honors in Action (HOI) project.

“Phi Theta Kappa gives students an opportunity to participate in activities that help them grow in leadership and intellect, both personally and professionally,” Dr. Kithcart says. “The work they put into earning Five Star status demonstrates that they can set goals and achieve them, maybe even more than they initially thought possible.”

Building Momentum

Dr. Welch and Dr. Kithcart set out to bolster the chapter when they joined as co-advisors, They attended leadership trainings, held regular meetings and recruitment activities, revised the chapter bylaws, and selected officers, which earned the chapter’s first three stars.

The students earned the fourth star through a creative College Project: a Zine Holder in the Marie Blair Burgess Library. Led by chapter member Romusus Eckert, a sophomore fine arts student, the collaborative space allows students to share ideas, artwork, and other self-published content.

“I think finding ways to give a voice to those who feel silenced right now is powerful,” Eckert said. “I’m proud of the zine wall and providing a way for anyone to express themselves and show us all the power of expression.”

Sophomore business student April Watt added, “We are very excited about the zine wall and look forward it being shared by other organizations and used as an alternative instructor assignment as a more creative outlet than traditional assignments.”

The Final Challenge

The fifth star required an HOI project, combining research and problem solving, centered on “The Power of Stories.”

Students studied different approaches to problem solving, developing research questions on how mysteries can inspire creative answers to deep questions. They interviewed faculty and administrators about solving unknowns throughout their careers and ran a “Memories and Mysteries” contest where participants shared how family memories helped them solve a mystery. The winners were recognized in the Pioneer Pinnacle with donations made to the Pioneer Pantry on their behalf.

In November, all that hard work paid off when the chapter was notified it had achieved Five Star status.

“Achieving Five Star status makes me realize that anyone can help a community, no matter who you are,” said Max Bashinskiy, a sophomore studying science. “Simply being present and showing that you care is a big part of making an impact in any situation.”

What’s Next

The Distinguished Chapter Advisor Team Award winner, which recognizes an advisory team for outstanding contributions to their chapter’s success, will be announced during the annual PTK Catalyst convention in April. For Dr. Welch and Dr. Kithcart, though, the real reward comes not from accolades but from helping students shape their futures.

“We do this work because it is fulfilling,” Dr. Welch said. “For the students, their participation is not a have-to. They’re choosing to learn the value in having a fulfilling career and doing something that is personally rewarding that contributes to their own experience and to this campus.”