MIAMI, July 16, 2020, – Miami Dade College (MDC) Hialeah Campus Professor Dr. Kelly Kennedy-Everett has been appointed to the Phi Theta Kappa’s (PTK) Honors Program Council. She is one of only four college faculty in the country selected to help PTK direct its activities for the next four years representing specific learning areas.
Dr. Kennedy-Everett, who joined MDC in 1993, is the PTK advisor at the Hialeah Campus, leading the chapter to great success contributing about 10,000 service hours to the community, working alongside partners Relay for Life, The Global Citizenship Project, Habitat for Humanity, Victim Response/The Lodge, Urban Paradise Guild, and Camillus House, among others.
“We are very proud of Dr. Kennedy-Everett’s appointment to this distinguished Council that gathers some of the best minds in higher education across the country,” said Dr. Anthony Cruz, Hialeah Campus President. “She is an exemplary faculty member, and an amazing community organizer who will make an incredibly positive impact during her tenure and beyond.”
Dr. Kennedy-Everett has a doctorate from the University of Phoenix, a master’s from Nova University, and a bachelor’s in English literature from Florida International University. She was initially on a path to becoming a nurse when an opportunity arose to tutor students in writing and she discovered a passion for teaching and literature, which prompted her to choose another profession where she could also help others. In addition to teaching English Composition courses for college-level students and students enrolled in the Honors College at MDC, Dr. Kennedy-Everett has taught English for Academic Purposes (EAP), Honors College Leadership, and English Composition I and II through MDC Online. For the past four years, she has facilitated the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Seminars in the area of research. Beyond the classroom, she was a member of the Core Team for the Bill and Melinda Gates Grant for MDC and served in the capacity of consultant to various pathways in English. She also served as faculty convener for the discipline for two years and created various assessments for the Learning Outcomes Assessment Team (LOAT).
Composed of PTK faculty advisors and consultants, the Honors Program Council selects the Society’s Honors Study Topic, an interdisciplinary focus used by chapters and colleges as the basis for honors study in discussions, courses, seminars, and Honors in Action Projects. In addition, the Council helps plan Phi Theta Kappa’s Honors Institute, a week-long summer conference focusing on the Honors Study Topic, and the Faculty Scholar Conference to train Honors Institute small-group leaders. Council members also serve on the Editorial Board of Civic Scholar: Phi Theta Kappa Journal of Undergraduate Research.
Phi Theta Kappa is the premier honor society recognizing the academic achievement of students at associate degree-granting colleges and helping them to grow as scholars and leaders. The Society is made up of more than 3.5 million members and nearly 1,300 chapters in 11 nations, with approximately 240,000 active members in the nation’s colleges. Learn more at www.ptk.org.