Central College has established a Sigma Chapter of Alpha Alpha Alpha, a national honor society for first-generation college students.
Alpha Alpha Alpha, or Tri-Alpha, was founded in March 2018 at Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Central is the first college in Iowa to have a chapter of Alpha Alpha Alpha and currently one of just 22 in the country.
The following criteria is needed to qualify for induction:
- The student must have completed at least 36 credit hours toward a degree.
- The student must have an overall GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale.
- Neither of the student’s parents, step-parents or legal guardians completed a bachelor’s degree.
Faculty and staff also may be inducted if they met the qualifying criteria at the time they completed their bachelor’s degree. Amy Young, associated professor of German, and Mary E.M. Strey, vice president of academic affairs and dean of faculty, will serve as faculty advisers.
Induction of the first cohort of Tri Alpha members at Central will be during the 2019-20 academic year. Currently, 24 percent of Central students are first-generation college students.
“Central has a legacy of educating first-generation students and supporting their success through graduation,” Strey says. “We look forward to celebrating their academic achievement through the organization and connecting them further with faculty and staff mentors.”
Membership is for life and offers the chance to meet and connect with other first-generation students.
