The members of Psi Chi are going all out for their major-focused organization to make a difference at Arkansas Tech and within the community.
The purpose of Psi Chi, an international honor society for psychology, is to encourage, stimulate and maintain excellence in scholarship of the individual members in all fields, particularly in psychology, and to advance the science of psychology.
The Arkansas Tech chapter grew expansively in the 2010-2011 academic year, honorably inducting 21 new members in the fall and 13 new members in the spring.
Psi Chi sponsors an Adopt-A-Highway mile that is located directly in front of the Arkansas Tech campus. The organization is responsible for cleaning the mile twice a year.
Each semester, Behavioral Sciences Week is co-hosted by Psi Chi and the Behavioral Sciences Club (BSC). Activities for the week generally include guest speakers, movies, graduate school Q&A sessions and a candlelight induction ceremony for new members.
Psi Chi participates in Time-Out for Tech and other organization fairs throughout the year. “Participation in the organizational fairs is a great time for all of the members to get reacquainted at the beginning of the new semester. The fair is also a great way for Psi Chi to recruit new members,” Janna Holmes, president of Psi Chi, said.
The Behavioral Sciences picnic in May is another event Psi Chi helps host. The picnic is held at a local park and is an appreciation potluck for the behavioral sciences department and their families.
This year, members raised funds by making candy-grams that students could order for Valentine’s Day without leaving campus.
Psi Chi supported the Red Flag Campaign this semester by building a display, volunteering at the “I Commit Board”, and participating in events such as the campus “Walk Against Violence” and the showing of the film “Tough Guise” that included a panel discussion at the end of the movie.
Benefits of membership in Psi Chi include access to the publication Eye on Psi Chi, participation in conferences and national elections, community service opportunities and the availability of research grants.
Arkansas Tech Psi Chi members recently attended the Southwestern Psychology Association conference in San Antonio. Students presented poster presentations and attended graduate school lectures presented by the current Psi Chi National President, Mr. Mike Hall, and the Psi Chi Southwestern Regional Vice-President, Mr. Randall Osborne.
Members are required to complete at least three semesters of college courses, nine semester hours of psychology, have a minimum GPA in psychology courses of 3.0, have a major or minor in psychology and pay the $45 membership fee. The fee is a for a lifetime membership.
Current Officers are president, Janna Holmes; vice-president, Shae Kirk; secretary, Courtney Howard; reporter, Alissa Hopkins; treasurer, Amy Johnson; historian, Alli Sims; recruiter, Bryan Mader. The advisers are Dr. David Osburn and Dr. Mark Peacock.
Psi Chi meets with the Behavioral Science Club every Tuesday at 5 p.m. in Witherspoon Room 334. Students interested in learning more about Psi Chi or the Behavioral Science Club should contact Janna Holmes at jbroyles@atu.edu.
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