By Aaron Turner/reporter
Psychology majors and non-majors alike joined the ranks of the International Honor Society in Psychology as the NE Campus group held its inaugural meeting Sept. 17.
Psi Beta, the community college chapter of the society, had received great interest prior to the first meeting, said instructor of psychology professor and group advisor Yvonne McCoy. She, along with psychology instructor Mike Leffingwell, organized the Psi Beta chapter.
“We had a large number of students sign up, wanting to join up with Psi Beta,” she said. “Because we’re an honor society, we were anticipating that.”
Psi Chi requires all students complete at least one psychology course with a B or higher and have a cumulative GPA of 3.0. Members must also have at least 12 college hours completed prior to joining.
Because of these requirements, both McCoy and Leffingwell are still uncertain about how many students will join.
“Psi Chi has chapters in both four-year and two-year colleges, so not everyone is able to meet the requirements they have, initially,” Leffingwell said. “However, I’m still confident we will have a high turnout of both psychology students and students just curious as to what Psi Beta is.”
Curiosity was what brought NE student Kalekia Adams to the club’s first meeting. The nursing major, who was elected club secretary during the meeting, said she’s always been a joiner.
“In high school, I was in as many clubs as I could possibly be,” Adams said. “When I was a student at Baylor, I continued this, so, of course, I’m going to be as active as I can be here at TCC.”
Adams was also persuaded to join after taking a summer psychology course with McCoy. Adams said she felt learning more about psychology could benefit any potential nursing major as it could help them in working with patients.
“When she mentioned the Psi Beta club in class, I immediately was interested,” she said.
Thirteen members were present for the first meeting, and six were elected to officer positions. President-elect Kathy Hotze, a social work major, said she is most interested in the community service projects the club will be organizing.
The most popular ideas brought up in the first meeting were social work related, something Hotze said she is passionate about.
“As someone who has been through abuse and had other obstacles to overcome in my life, becoming a social worker is something I really envision myself doing,” she said.
Although not a psychology major, Hotze was aware of the strong relationship between psychology and working within the community.
“Social work and community service really are both directly affected by psychology,” she said. “When we learn to recognize how other people behave, what they feel, we know better exactly how to help them in some way.”
Psi Beta also gives students a chance to interact with other psychology students and teachers as well as allowing students lifetime membership in the International Honor Society in Psychology.
“Being part of such a prestigious organization is another reason why I’m excited to be in Psi Beta,” Adams said. “I also think it will be one of the big attractions to the club here on campus.”
Both Leffingwell and McCoy highlighted a handful of psychology conferences and forums members can attend throughout the semester as well as the affiliate memberships students can become a part of, including the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science.
“We’ve really got something for everyone,” McCoy said.
“Whether you’re a psychology major and want to have a career in that field or just interested in being a part of an honor society, this club is a great opportunity for students.”
Psi Beta is planning to hold an induction ceremony on NE Campus in early November.
The club will also hold meetings the first Tuesday and third Friday of every month in NBSS 2216.
“I think a lot of students feel like being in community college is just something you do until you go to a university, and then your real college experience begins,” Hotze said. “But I feel like the sooner students get involved in extracurriculars and join clubs like these, the more they will get out of being at TCC.”
