Spring 2014 Mini Newsletter - Phi Theta Kappa Nevada/California

Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society
Nevada/California Regional Newsletter
Silver&Gold
Mini Issue
Hello Phi Theta Kappa Members!
Your regional officers have been working tirelessly to plan and prepare for upcoming events.
MARK YOUR CALANDERS!

Northern Districts’ Summit
Date: March 8, 2014
Time: Noon to 5:00 PM
Location: De Anza College 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd, Cupertino, CA 95014

Nevada/Southeast/Southwest District Summit
Date: March 15, 2014
Time: 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Location: Southwestern College 900 Otay Lakes Rd, Chula Vista, CA 91910

NV/CA Spring Regional Convention
Date: March 28-29, 2014
Time: Registration Begins 2:00 PM
First General Session 5:00 PM
Location: Kellogg West Conference Center & Hotel 3801 W Temple Ave, Pomona, CA 91768
The NV/CA Regional Officers look forward to your attendance at these events! Each event requires
registration via eventbrite. Make sure to register early to reserve your spot, and don’t forget about hotel accommodations. Additionally, we hope that you will invite us to any upcoming events your chapter will be hosting.
To arrange for Regional Officer attendance at your event please contact VP of Communication Mariamne
Beuscher. Alternatively, you may contact officers directly. (NV/CA Regional Officer contact information can
be found on the last page.)
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ATTENTION: YOU CAN BE A REGIONAL OFFICER!!!
“I can only speak from personal experience but the experience,
leadership skills, personal growth and wonderful friends I have gained are priceless.
I could have never accomplished this without Phi Theta Kappa.”
- Former Regional Officer, Anonymous
Being a Regional Officer is more than just a great honor with abundant opportunities; it is a position of
great responsibility and leadership. Here’s your opportunity to step up to the next level of Phi Theta Kappa
leadership.
The process for electing the 2014-2015 Regional Officers starts now with your interest in running for
regional office. The process concludes with the election of Regional Officers during the 2014 NV/CA Regional Convention to be held at the Kellogg West facility in Pomona, CA. (nearest airport is Ontario; more convention information to be sent out separately).
An extensive document detailing the process for running for office has been sent to all NV/CA Chapter
Advisors, and is provided in this newsletter. The election process document will also be available via the link
on the regional website directly at http://nvcaregion.org/regionalelectionprocess.html
Your candidacy is greatly encouraged, and the Regional Board looks forward to your enthusiastic and
dedicated leadership.
This could be YOU!
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2014 NV/CA Regional Officer
Election Procedure
This following information is provided to inform you of the campaign and election process we will
follow in electing the 2014-2015 NV/CA Regional Officers during the Regional Convention to be held at the
Kellogg West Conference Center, March 28-29, 2014.
Being a Regional Officer is a new challenge, with new situations, new pathways, and new rewards.
The officers of our region have a significant role in the development and progress of our region, and as such,
need to be committed to the concept of Phi Theta Kappa, and to our region.
There are 7 Board positions consisting of 5 District Vice Presidents, a Regional Communications Vice
President, and a Regional President. A regional officer is to serve an entire year, from the time of election to
the following year’s (March 2015) Regional Convention. Please make sure you will be enrolled in your community college for the entire upcoming academic year.
Regional Officer Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

The District VP's responsibilities include contacting and working with other chapters within that officer's
District, perhaps even attending induction ceremonies when feasible, and being a keynote speaker. The
District VP must maintain communication with the chapters in the VP’s District. The District VP develops and hosts district-wide summits, at least one per semester.

The Communications VP keeps minutes of all Board meetings, distributing the minutes to each member
of the Regional Board, and posts a summary on the regional website. The CVP also designs and composes
the Regional Newsletter that is distributed to the Region.

The President has the responsibility of being available to all chapters in the Region --at least by email, if
not in person, and also serving as a guest speaker at induction ceremonies or other chapter events, should
transportation and other arrangements be feasible. The President presides over the officer board and shares
in the responsibilities.

All officers preside over General Sessions at Regional meetings, and plan and conduct workshops for the
Fall and Spring Regional Conferences. All officers are responsible for overseeing various Regional Projects, and have input into the following year’s regional projects. Members come to you for answers to
questions, thus you need to know those answers. Officers generate a Regional Officer Team Mission
Statement. Officers participate in Regional Board telephone conference calls (one every three or four
weeks). All officers should be on the lookout for potential successors: as you meet and get to know members from around the region, you should encourage them to run for the following year’s regional board.
***All officers should be conversant in various Phi Theta Kappa (Regional and International) programs: 5Star; the four Hallmarks; Honors in Action; Hallmark Awards (both International and Regional); Competitive
Edge; CollegeFish.org; College Completion; Honors Seminar Series; NV/CA Regional Projects (and these are
just some of the major ones!)***
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Benefits of Being a Regional Officer:

Your expenses to all regional events are paid by the Region

You are in a position to inspire and motivate others

Your chapter has greater insight into the happenings of the Region

You get to travel throughout –and possibly outside– the Region

You could receive scholarship offers directly from 4-yr colleges/universities (Headquarters typically posts
on the ptk.org website the list of regional officers; that list is usually checked by those schools.)

You work with others who are equally committed to the success of the Officer Team and the Region

You have the opportunity to attend the Phi Theta Kappa Academy –part of the April International Convention; but you are responsible for getting to and registering for the convention
If you are interested in running for regional office, there are a few procedures to follow:
You (the candidate) must send NV/CA Regional Coordinator Charlie Klein an email containing:
1. Your name
2. Your email address
3. Your college, chapter name, and district (see listing of colleges and districts on regional website http://
nvcaregion.org/districtsandchapters.html ; if your chapter is not listed and you are unsure of your district,
contact VP of Communication Mariamne Beuscher)
4. The office, which you seek. Example: PRES (President), COMM (VP of Communication), NVP (Nevada
VP), NEVP (Northeast VP), NWVP (Northwest VP), SEVP (Southeast VP), SWVP (Southwest VP
Include, as attachments:
1. Candidate statement, about 250 words, equivalent to no more than one page, one and one-half or doublespaced, three-quarters to one inch margins all around, minimum of 10 point font (reckless editing will ensue if your statement drastically runs outside of these limits). Save your statement in the following named
format: POSITIONName.doc using a code shown above, such as NWVPCharlieKlein.doc [or .docx
format] .
2. Candidate video. Your video can be no more than three minutes.
* Both the candidate statement and video are about you. Both items will be posted on the Regional website, if
you do not provide a statement or video a note will be posted on the website.*
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A second email must be sent Charlie Klein from your chapter advisor (your advisor received instructions explaining his/her role in this process).
The advisor’s email:
1. Verifies that you are a member in good standing.
2. Serves as a letter of recommendation, indicating your advisor’s recognition of your ability to serve as a
Regional Officer.
Both of these emails along with your candidate statement & video
must be received by midnight on Saturday, February 15, 2014.
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Join the NV/CA Regional Officers &
Collect Points with a Purpose!
Kellogg’s Family Reward codes will be collected during registration at the
NV/CA Spring Regional Convention, March 28 at the Kellogg West Conference Center and Hotel.
Codes which are redeemed for points can be found on hundreds of Kellogg’s
brand products! For a complete list of brands check out:
www.kelloggsfamilyrewards.com
The chapter that submits the most codes will get to select the charity
which the redeemed points will be donated to. Please cut codes out of
the box and submit all of your chapter’s codes in a sealed envelope at
the time of Convention Registration. Include on the front of the
envelope:
Chapter Name
College Name
Advisor Name and Email Address
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Nota Bene Notables
The latest issue of Nota Bene (the annual Phi Theta Kappa literary magazine) has been published,
and 3 of the 27 published authors are from the NV/CA Region.
Nota Bene was founded in 1994 to showcase exceptional writing among community college students. Copies
of Nota Bene are distributed to all community college libraries and to Phi Theta Kappa leaders. Since the establishment of the journal and the scholarship program, $57,000 in scholarships have been presented to Phi
Theta Kappa members, and more than 300 students have had their work published.
Special recognition is due to the following NV/CA members...
William Lawrence Levitt of Coastline Community College is one of 4 recipients of the Reynolds
Award ("Point of View"). He also had a second article ("The Decline of Reading Proficiency: A Proposal") that was also included in the anthology of writings.
Erika Padilla-Morales of Merritt College ("Don't Act Like Those Black People (Aunque Somos Negros)"
Alysa Joerger of Sierra College ("Soldiers to the Slaughter")
Please join me in sending Congratulations to our literary honorees!!!
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Letter from Madame President Shani Akobundu
Dear Nevada/California Region,
Happy New Semester!
On behalf of the 2013/2014 NV/CA Regional Board, I would like to invite you to join us on March 2829, 2014 for the Nevada/ California Regional Conference at the Kellogg West Convention Center at Cal State
Poly, Pomona, CA! Join us for workshops on topics from understanding the basics of Phi Theta Kappa, to balancing the multiple responsibilities we hold as honor society students and "everyday kind of people".
Furthermore, in line of our new Honors in Action topic: Exploring New Frontiers, I encourage you to
embrace this concept, not only for your chapter projects, but in your own lives. The author Harun Yahya once
stated, "I always wonder why birds choose to stay in the same place when they can fly anywhere in the world.
Then I ask myself the same question." In that spirit, before the stress of midterms, and the occasionally dreaded realities of life attempt to overwhelm you - take a moment to step back and reflect on where you would like
to "fly" to.
For some this may be your first semester with Phi Theta Kappa, and for others, your time with us is
coming to a close. Think of this not as a closing of a door, but of the opening of " New Frontiers" and new opportunities. Whether you are graduating, or transferring, this is simply the next beautiful step in your exploration of yourself, and our world. Participation in Phi Theta Kappa has afforded us with the opportunities to give
back to our communities, apply our academic knowledge, and glimpse our abilities as future leaders.
In honor of Black History month, I feel it appropriate to close with a quote from Dr. Martin Luther
King Jr., "The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by
the good people."
We, as Phi Theta Kappans, acknowledge, reassess, and make change. Now is your time! The question
is, are you ready?
With the sincerest appreciation for your active involvement in
Phi Theta Kappa- Nevada/California Region,
Shani Akobundu
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NV/CA Regional Board Contact Information
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