Junior Victoria Burnette Earns $6,000 Phi Eta Sigma Scholarship

May 6, 2013

Junior Victoria Burnette Earns $6,000 Phi Eta Sigma Scholarship

Georgia Southern University honors student Victoria Burnette has received a $6,000 scholarship from Phi Eta Sigma National Honor Society, making her the fourth consecutive student in Georgia Southern’s local chapter to be awarded the scholarship since 2010. Burnette, a junior, is the president of Georgia Southern’s Phi Eta Sigma chapter, and a Pre-Law Justice Studies major with a minor in History.

A member of the Delta Epsilon Iota National Academic Honor Society, Burnette was selected based upon her leadership as a Peer Facilitator with the First-Year Experience (FYE) Eagle Incentive Program (EIP), as well as her outstanding academic achievement, campus involvement and community service.

“Watching students like Victoria be successful is one of the great joys of being an educator for me,” said Chris Caplinger, director of the First-Year Experience program. “She has been instrumental in making Phi Eta Sigma a dedicated service organization.”

As a second year Peer Facilitator in the FYE Eagle Incentive Program, Burnette serves as a role model for the students,  and advises students on how to make the most of their collegiate experience. She facilitates small group discussions on college life, goal setting, study tips and time management while serving as a liaison to the program director.

“One thing I love about EIP is that we see the value in a student who has performed well throughout the academic school year, but doesn’t do well on standardized tests,” said Burnette. “It’s wonderful because it gives students the opportunity to get ahead. We have over a 90% success rate.”

As event coordinator for Phi Eta Sigma during her sophomore year, Burnette led the society’s volunteer efforts at Gentilly Gardens Assisted Living and the Boys & Girls Club of Bulloch County. In addition to participating in community events like the international festival and the campus-wide fundraiser called “Light the Night” for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital,  she tutored students in area middle and high schools, among other activities.

A native of Suwanee, Ga., Burnette also serves as a Southern Ambassador and member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and the Justice Studies Club. In addition, she is a Talon Leadership Award recipient. Burnette plans to earn her master’s degree in management from Wake Forest University in Winston Salem, N.C., and later to attend law school.  

Phi Eta Sigma is a national freshman honor society, with membership in the campus chapter open to students who earn a 3.6 GPA or higher in their first year of college. In February, 433 first-year students were inducted into the campus chapter, pushing the membership to  1,421 undergraduates in Spring 2013.

Phi Eta Sigma members are actively involved in community service in the Statesboro area, as well as activities to promote the success of first-year students. They work as student leaders in the “Conversations with Professors” program in which students brand new to the college classroom meet with a faculty member the day before classes begin to ask any questions and to find out what is expected of them academically.

In addition to Burnette, fellow Phi Eta Sigma member Melissa Royal, a sophomore majoring in International Trade, was also awarded a scholarship from the national honor society in the amount of $1,000.