QCC Honor Society Wins National Award

WORCESTER, MA— August 9, 2023 — Quinsigamond Community College’s Psi Beta Honor Society has recently received the Chapter Excellence Award from the Psi Beta National Council. This award recognizes Psi Beta chapters that provide multiple activities which engage student members in service, research, leadership, and scholarship. Psi Beta is the national honor society in psychology for community colleges and is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies.

While this is the first time QCC’s Psi Beta has won the award, chapter advisor and Professor of Psychology Valarie Clemente said that the organization has had high engagement for years and part of receiving the award is due to the initiative taken by the chapter president, recent QCC graduate Austin Schacht, who took the initiative to apply for the award.

“Chapter advisors such as Professor Valarie Clemente volunteer countless hours to mentor their students. Your students are truly fortunate to have such a professor supporting and mentoring them,” said Psi Beta National Council Executive Director Jerry Rudmann.

Recent activities sponsored by QCC’s chapter of Psi Beta included an original research project addressing stereotyping and a variety of guest speakers on topics such as the intersection of criminal justice and psychology.

“Activities such as the annual research project led by QCC Professor of Psychology Eric Mania, offer community college students a rare opportunity to do real research, analyze data and present at local professional conferences. If they want to go on to graduate work, they’ll need that research background,” Clemente said, adding, “Our students work so hard and it’s so valuable for them to put what their learning into practice and see that it’s valued on a national level.”

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