Pinnacle is MTSU's chapter of the national Pinnacle Honor
Society for nontraditional students, generally over the age of 25. Our
MTSU chapter makes exceptions for students with adult responsibilities
who are not yet 25. In addition to the 3.0 GPA
required for undergraduates (3.4 for graduate students), Pinnacle looks
at previous community service, volunteer work, and honors which the
student has earned in life.
[ Leadership Roles ] [ Award of Achievement ]
To apply for membership submit the personal data sheet along with your $40 check by the October 10, 2011 deadline for Fall 2011 or the April 2, 2012 deadline for Spring 2012.
Why
Join Pinnacle Honor Society?
If you are a non-traditional student who excels in your college work, Pinnacle
membership will celebrate your academic achievement as an adult learner. It can
mark to others, on your resume, for example, that you were an above-average
student without them having to look at your transcript. Alumni Pinnacle members
tell us that it helped them during a job interview. It has also become a nice
supportive group for those who have chosen to become active leaders in the
organization. The officers of Pinnacle participate in the annual Adult Learning
Conference and usually send representatives to the annual ANTSHE (Association
for Non-Traditional Students in Higher Education) conferences. They also
contribute ideas to the
Reach for the Pinnacle Student Success Series, a service project of
Pinnacle that provides online workshops to develop study skills and paper
writing skills aimed primarily at the non-traditional student population at
MTSU.
The Pinnacle Honor Society was founded by Dr. Frank Julian, a faculty member and administrator at Murray State University in Murray, Kentucky, in 1989. Dr. Julian recognized the dedication of nontraditional students and the institutions’ inability to recognize these deserving students because of unobtainable requirements developed by traditional honor societies. Traditional honor societies recognized the accomplishments of typical traditional students (i.e. full-time students who have on-campus leadership responsibilities). In many cases, nontraditional students work full-time, attend college part-time, and care for family members. Many nontraditional students also live miles away from their school and attend via distant learning opportunities. So, Pinnacle was designed with those nontraditional students in mind.
Where
does the $40 membership fee go?
The national Pinnacle Honor Society organization receives $20 for each new
member. The national organization provides each new member their personalized
Pinnacle certificate, a letter of welcome to the organization, a seal for your
diploma, and a Pinnacle lapel pin (and because we usually have such a quick
turn-around before the initiation, they usually have to overnight them to us).
The other $20 is an annual dues fee for the local chapter. We use that money to fund the publicity of our Reach for the Pinnacle Student Success series and for the costs of travel to the ANTSHE conference that might not be covered by the Student Activity Fee funds. It also provides part of the food served at fall dinner and the spring picnic, shared by the OWLs student organization for all our adult learners.
Need
More Info About Pinnacle?
Please contact our officers, at owls@mtsu.edu for details.
Pinnacle membership is open
to all MTSU adult learners who are juniors and seniors with a 3.0 GPA or graduate
students with a 3.4 GPA. An online personal data
sheet to apply for membership is available for your convenience.
Don't forget to mail in your $40 check by the deadline to complete your
online application.
[ Leadership Roles ] [ Award of Achievement ]