SANFORD, N.C. - Academic achievement and service were celebrated April 23 as Central Carolina Community College's Beta Sigma Phi Chapter of the Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society held its spring induction ceremony at the Dennis A. Wicker Civic & Conference Center.

Inductees from 2023-2024 were recognized during the ceremony.

Phi Theta Kappa is the largest honor society in American higher education. In 1929, the American Association of Community Colleges recognized PTK as the official honor society for two-year colleges. The CCCC chapter, chartered in 2010, sets a higher standard for membership eligibility than the national organization: a 3.7 grade point average rather than the 3.5 GPA that national requires.

Sarah Shannon-Mohamed, CCCC PTK Scholars Advisor and Director of Onboarding and New Student Programs, introduced the guest speaker - her daughter, Dhalia Mohamed-Kempton.

Mohamed-Kempton, a former CCCC student, joined Beta Sigma Phi in 2015 and the Alpha Omega Carolinas Region Alumni Association in 2016. She briefly returned to community college in 2019 and ran for Phi Theta Kappa International Vice President for Division I. After returning to alumni status, Dhalia served as the AO Communication Officer from 2020-2022, and the Transfer Fair Coordinator in 2022.

"Today is a monumental day for each of you. It is days like these where we desperately try to savor the memories we make but inevitably tend to forget crucial details. If you take away nothing else from today's ceremony, remember these four words: Scholarship, Leadership, Service, and Fellowship," said Mohamed-Kempton.

"These are the four hallmarks of Phi Theta Kappa. These four words will become omnipresent in your life from this day forward. Whether you act upon them with intention or not, these hallmarks will become one with you - presenting in your actions, your conscience, and the decisions you make as a Phi Theta Kappan."

She concluded her remarks by saying, "I congratulate each and every one of you at this induction tonight. May you continue to do great work, and see even greater things for yourself."

CCCC President Dr. Lisa M. Chapman provided welcoming remarks.

Sandra Castonguay, PTK Co-Advisor and CCCC Information and Engineering Technologies Department Chair, gave introductory remarks. Kelly Dorman, PTK Co-Advisor and CCCC Criminal Justice Studies Department Chair, read the PTK history and gave the charge to members.

Introduction of inductees was by Gretchen Gunter, PTK President. PTK officers led the induction ceremony.

Phi Theta Kappa is composed of Greek words symbolizing wisdom, aspiration, and purity. A white rose symbolizes purity, beauty of life, and intellectual associations, while the oak and laurel leaves on the PTK emblem represent stability, character, achievement, and success.

CCCC Phi Theta Kappa officers are: Gretchen Gunter, President; Kate Perez, Vice President of Fellowship and Leadership; Troy Howard, Vice President of Leadership and Service; Alyssa McWhirter, Treasurer; and Isabella Rubio, Recording Officer.

Advisors are Lara Abels, Projects Advisor; Sandra Castonguay, Activities Advisor; Kelly Dorman, General Advisor; and Sarah Shannon-Mohamed, Scholarships Advisor.

In its years of existence, the college's Beta Sigma Phi Chapter has garnered a number of prestigious recognitions from PTK. These include the Five-Star ranking -- the highest ranking a chapter can receive for excellence, and awards at regional PTK conferences. It has also reached out to the community with service projects, such as assisting food banks and shelters.

See downloadable photos from the event at www.cccc.edu/slideshows/galleries/20240423-PTK-Induction-Ceremony.

Watch video from the event at www.4cnclive.com/on-demand/?show=4287.

The 2024 PTK new inductees are:

Charissa Adams (Fort Campbell, KY)

Calia Addison (Sanford, NC)

Kimberly Allen (Erwin, NC)

Carter Anderson (Broadway, NC)

Kelsey Andrews (Bear Creek, NC)

April Armstrong (Spring Lake, NC)

Gabriel Basham (Sanford, NC)

Aubree Bass (Dunn, NC)

Robert Bear (Raleigh, NC)

Sabrina Black (Fayetteville, NC)

John Blocker (Chapel Hill, NC)

Jillian Bogart (Siler City, NC)

Cameron Brengle (Lillington, NC)

Krystin Brice (Chapel Hill, NC)

Dayquinton Bullock (Liberty, NC)

Brittany Burns (West End, NC)

Leiani Bush (Sanford, NC)

Clahra Buswell (Cameron, NC)

Gerard Capstaff (Sanford, NC)

Helen Casavant (Apex, NC)

Tyler Clayton (Erwin, NC)

Trinity Cochran (Linden, NC)

Hakeem Cole (Sanford, NC)

Helene Colon (Spring Lake, NC)

Riley Connor (Fuquay-Varina, NC)

Jazmine Cowan (Erwin, NC)

Justin Davis (Sanford, NC)

Jonathan Doidge (Apex, NC)

Sarah Dolley (Sanford, NC)

Brandon Downs (Goldston, NC)

Noah Emery (Pittsboro, NC)

Katie Faircloth (Sanford, NC)

Joely Faulkner (Lillington, NC)

Layla Fisher (Linden, NC)

Sherijah Foster-Rhames (Charlotte, NC)

Carter Frank (Sanford, NC)

Nazaria Garcia (Cameron, NC)

Ramon Gomez (Cameron, NC)

Vielka Gonzalez Gomez (Siler City, NC)

Kameron Gooch (Siler City, NC)

Leah Greer (Holly Springs, NC)

Tessa Griffin (Broadway, NC)

Kasey Holder (Pittsboro, NC)

Lucas Honan (Sanford, NC)

Luc Horne (Pittsboro, NC)

Jessica Hudson (Sanford, NC)

Kelsey Hussey (Bear Creek, NC)

Ellie Isgett (Pittsboro, NC)

Katherine Johnson (Raleigh, NC)

Jamie Jones (Sanford, NC)

Hannah Kerkhover (Chapel Hill, NC)

Heather Kidd (Lillington, NC)

Casey King (Sanford, NC)

Joseph King (Pittsboro, NC)

Chloe Lacorte (Angier, NC)

Brinkley Lucas (Sanford, NC)

Catherine Maclean (Chapel Hill, NC)

Jada Malloy (Dunn, NC)

Jayley Martin (Goldston, NC)

Melanie Martinez (Vass, NC)

Ingrid McAuley (Sanford, NC)

Kenneth Mendez (Sanford, NC)

Estefani Merida Lopez (Siler City, NC)

Julianne Mouser (Sanford, NC)

Anthony Munoz (Durham, NC)

Lysander Nelson (Broadway, NC)

Hayden Newman (Sanford, NC)

Heather Oliveria (Bear Creek, NC)

Aiden O'Neil (Sanford, NC)

Garin Parker (Carthage, NC)

Gianna Pasquale (Apex, NC)

Rudra Patel (Sanford, NC)

Jamie Pendergraft (Pittsboro, NC)

Tiana Phelps (Chapel Hill, NC)

Brittany Phillips (Raleigh, NC)

Seth Phillips (Sanford, NC)

Andrea Ramos (Sanford, NC)

Heather Reece (Chapel Hill, NC)

Madison Reimer (Cameron, NC)

Jennifer Reynolds (Carthage, NC)

Laila Robinson (Dunn , NC)

Stefanie Rowland (Fuquay-Varina, NC)

Chasity Scholl (Aberdeen, NC)

Avery Schrader (Southern Pines, NC)

Elena Shelton-Krippa (Sanford, NC)

Joshua Skolozynski (Angier, NC)

Kaitlyn Smith (Durham, NC)

Anthony Stone (Charlotte, NC)

Cameo Strifler (Spring Lake, NC)

Irelynn Strother (Siler City, NC)

Hannah Summers (Fuquay-Varina, NC)

Marilyn Swann (Sanford, NC)

Ayden Taylor (Sanford, NC)

Alexus Thompson (Sanford, NC)

Luong Tran (Lillington, NC)

Suzannah Tremmel (Raleigh, NC)

Jack Triglianos (Pittsboro, NC)

Elizabeth Upchurch (Sanford, NC)

Cathelin Van Heusden-Olsen (Chapel Hill, NC)

Sandra Vankretschmar (Siler City, NC)

Jonathan Velasquez Ramos (Sanford, NC)

Ezekiel Verinder (Chapel Hill, NC)

Hallie Webster (Bear Creek, NC)

Janice Wilkes (Carthage, NC)

McKayla Wilkie (Sanford, NC)

Aaron Williams (Sanford, NC)

Ava Williams (Cameron, NC)

Annastasia Woody (Pittsboro, NC)

Dawson Yow (Broadway, NC)