Alpha Upsilon Tau Secretary

December 2022

“Established in 1918, Phi Theta Kappa has a presence on almost 1,300 community college campuses in 11 nations. The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) recognized Phi Theta Kappa as the official honor society for two-year colleges in 1929. More than 3.8 million students have been inducted since 1918, with approximately 250,000 active members in the nation’s community colleges, making Phi Theta Kappa a true catalyst among members and colleges”?(PTK, 2022).

Education is not something I take lightly because I know the weight it holds in the working world. As a 33-year-old, I have spent the last seven years working in warehouses in Indiana trying to find the right combinations of certificates and experiences to hopefully be able to make a comfortable living for myself. 2020, I spent working at FedEx, loading and unloading trailers and driving the little miniature yard horse around the gigantic warehouse for 10 hours a day. In 2021 I took a leap of faith and decided to get my commercial driver’s license.? Driving around alone in the truck gives you plenty of time to think. Think about what? Think about your life.

Earning my commercial driver’s license gave me the confidence and the motivation to go back to school. Not just go back to school and finish my degree, but I wanted to go back to school and hustle. The same hustle and motivation I had earning my CDL. I did not intend to become a Phi Theta Kappa member, but the opportunity presented itself to me and I accepted. I work hard every day on my assignments, and I always keep at least 3 calendars. I have one year left at Ivy Tech, and I have already been accepted into IUPUI. Thank you, PTK!

Being a PTK member for me sets in stone the hard work and time that I have put into my education. It shows others that I put in the time and effort to see assignments through to completion. I am a person of integrity. This is something that I will ever be grateful for. It is more than just a piece of paper. It gives me the motivation to keep pushing and set my goals even higher and to never stop dreaming.

According to Forbes “The median salary for workers with high school diplomas is $38,792, and they have an average unemployment rate of 3.7% as of 2019, according to an analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data by Northeastern University. By contrast, the median salary for workers with bachelor’s degrees is $64,896, and their unemployment rate is just 2.2% on average”?(Tretina, 2022). Yes, this says bachelor’s degree, but isn’t that the point of this campus insider? Phi Theta Kappa gets us from associate to bachelor, without the headache. Being a PTK member is worth the extra time and effort.

Logic Publishers (2022) gives us 10 reasons why we should work hard in life. Hard work gets you the respect you always wanted. Hard work is an example to our kids, Hard work is guaranteed achievement. Hard work allows you to live a regret–free life and grows every bit of you. Hard work is what successful people do and keeps you positive. Hard work gives you freedom from the sarcastic comments of relatives. Finally, hard work helps you to enjoy the journey of life and make meaning out of it. These principles for life can translate to our courses here at Ivy Tech and into every area of our lives. PTK will give you the breathing room you need from overbearing relatives and who doesn’t need that during the holidays?

When one door closes, another one will open, but you must be looking to find it. I am so grateful to be a Phi Theta Kappan!

Happy Holidays!

Sarah Privett

References

PTK. (2022). Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. Retrieved from ptk.org: https://www.ptk.org/join/faqs/

Staff, E. (2020, March 28). 10 Most Important Reasons Why You Should Work Hard in Life. Retrieved from Logic Publishers: https://www.logicpublishers.com/reasons-why-you-should-work-hard/

Tretina, K. (2022). Forbes Advisor. Retrieved from Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/advisor/student-loans/is-college-worth-it/#:~:text=Not%20only%20do%20you%20gain%20valuable%20life%20experience