Cedar Park, Leander Pupils Tapped By Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society

CEDAR PARK, TEXAS — Several Cedar Park and Leander residents and one from Lago Vista were recently initiated into the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation's oldest and most selective all-discipline collegiate society of its kind.

The honored students are:

• Abigail Broekhuizen of Leander, initiated at Texas State University.
• Xiaoyuan Jiang of Cedar Park, initiated at Texas State University.
• Ellena Martinez of Cedar Park, Texas State University.
• Galen Munger of Cedar Park, Texas State University.
• Jewelee Merka of Leander, Texas State University.
• Kathryn Lynch of Lago Vista, Texas State University.
• Marissa Henis of Cedar Park, initiated at University of Florida.
• Yasmin Ali of Cedar Park, Texas State University.
• Kristine Wood of Leander, Texas, was initiated at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.
• Jason Thomas of Cedar Park, Texas, initiated at Texas A&M University.

These residents are among some 30,000 students, faculty, professional staff and alumni to be initiated into Phi Kappa Phi each year. Membership is by invitation only and requires nomination and approval by a chapter, officials explained.

To put the honor in further context: Only the top 10 percent of seniors and 7.5 percent of juniors are eligible for membership. Graduate students in the top 10 percent of the number of candidates for graduate degrees may also qualify, as do faculty, professional staff and alumni who have achieved scholarly distinction.

Phi Kappa Phi was founded in 1897 under the leadership of undergraduate student Marcus L. Urann who had a desire to create a different kind of honor society: one that recognized excellence in all academic disciplines. Today, the Society has chapters on more than 300 campuses in the United States and the Philippines. Its mission: "To recognize and promote academic excellence in all fields of higher education and to engage the community of scholars in service to others."

About Phi Kappa Phi

Since its founding, more than 1.5 million members have been initiated into Phi Kappa Phi. Some of the organization's notable members include former President Jimmy Carter, NASA astronaut Wendy Lawrence, novelist John Grisham and YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley. Each year, Phi Kappa Phi awards nearly $1 million to outstanding students and members through graduate and dissertation fellowships, undergraduate study abroad grants, funding for post-baccalaureate development, and grants for local, national and international literacy initiatives. For more information about Phi Kappa Phi, visit www.phikappaphi.org.