BVI News

Richard Georges

H. Lavity Stoutt Community College Lecturer Richard Georges has been selected to serve as a Faculty Scholar by the Phi Theta Kappa International Honour Society for the second year running.

This time, the duties will take him to Society’s Headquarters in Jackson, Mississippi for the Faculty Scholar Conference from 2-6 February and to Boston University for his primary function as a facilitator at the 2011 PTK Honours Institute from 11-18 June. The current study topic is “The Democratization of Information: Power, Peril and Promise” and the Institute will provide approximately 400 participants with five days of intensive examination of this theme.

Since 1968, the Institute has engaged members in rigorous investigation of a study topic, an academic theme selected for its timeliness, global significance and interdisciplinary applications. Created to celebrate PTK’s 50^th anniversary, the format is based on a programme used at Oxford University in the United Kingdom.

Faculty Scholars serve as seminar leaders during the annual Honours Institute. In preparation for their role as seminar leaders, they participate in the Faculty Scholar Conference. Every year, about 20 chapter advisors and regional coordinators are selected to serve as Faculty Scholars.

“I am incredibly humbled by the confidence shown in me by the Phi Theta Kappa leadership and by the Honours Programme Committee by granting me this prestigious opportunity,” said Mr. Georges after learning of his selection. “But more importantly, I am honoured at once again being able to represent my College, an institution to which I have been inextricably connected for the past 12 years as student, staff, and faculty, in this exciting and intellectually engaging arena.”

President of HLSCC Dr. Karl Dawson, in commending Mr. Georges, said the College is proud to be at the forefront of the development of challenging opportunities for students in the region. “And we are particularly pleased that such honour has been accorded to our faculty member,” he said.

Mr. Georges, who lectures in the Humanities, Communications and Social Sciences Department at the College, was also selected in 2010 as a Faculty Scholar for the Honours Institute at Chapman University in Orange, California. In early November, he was also certified as a PTK Leadership Instructor after successfully completing the requirements at a certification seminar at Valencia Community College in Orlando, Florida.

After completing an Associate Degree in Arts at HLSCC in 2000, Mr. Georges worked as a Teaching Assistant, specifically with the courses ENG 104 and ENG 107, becoming the first alumnus to serve as a faculty member. His graduating class was the first to do so using the honours nomenclature “cum laude” and “magna cum laude,” and he himself graduated “cum laude.”

He now holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English from Texas Christian University and a Master’s in Creative Writing from Aberystwyth University in the U.K.

Phi Theta Kappa is the largest international honour society in higher education, serving 1,250 two-year institutions around the world and offering exclusive programmes and benefits for members that contribute to a dynamic college experience. Beta Omicron Sigma at HLSCC is the only PTK Chapter in the Eastern Caribbean. Students must achieve a grade point average of 3.6 to become members.

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