MCC's Devin Oakes Awarded by PTK

Devin OakesDevin Oakes Mesa Community College Student Devin Oakes is one of twenty Phi Theta Kappa members who have been selected as 2013 Guistwhite Scholarship recipients. Devin will be recognized and invited to a special reception during Phi Theta Kappa’s Annual Convention in San Jose, California, April 4-6. Each year $100,000 in scholarship funds are awarded, with each Guistwhite Scholar receiving a $5,000 scholarship for baccalaureate studies and a commemorative medallion.

Guistwhite Scholars are chosen based on academic achievement, leadership accomplishment, and engagement in Phi Theta Kappa programs. The 20 recipients for 2013 were selected by a panel of independent judges from more than 1,800 applicants to receive this scholarship, the second highest offered by Phi Theta Kappa. 

Oakes, a Mesa resident, is transferring to Arizona State University to pursue a degree in Non-Profit Leadership and Management.  During his time at MCC, he was awarded the U.S. President’s Lifetime Volunteer Service Award for 4000+ hours of service, the AmeriCorps Clinton Global Initiative University Scholarship and the Coca Cola Leaders of Promise Scholarship Award.

The Guistwhite Scholar Program is named in honor of the late Dr. Jack Guistwhite and his widow, Margaret Guistwhite. Dr. Guistwhite established the first designated transfer scholarship for Phi Theta Kappa members at Florida Atlantic University in 1975. The Guistwhite Scholarships were established by Phi Theta Kappa in 1992.

“Dr. Jack Guistwhite planted a seed in 1975 that resulted in more than 750 colleges and universities designating transfer scholarships for thousands of Phi Theta Kappa members,” said Phi Theta Kappa’s Executive Director Dr. Rod A. Risley. “It is fitting that we continue to honor our students who excel in scholarship and leadership in Phi Theta Kappa as Guistwhite Scholars in memory of Jack and in honor of his wife Margaret. Through their generosity and those who support scholarships through the Phi Theta Kappa Foundation, these students will receive funds to help them complete their degrees.”

About Mesa Community College

Mesa Community College provides outstanding transfer and career and technical programs, workforce development, and life-long learning opportunities to residents of the East Valley area of Phoenix, Arizona. MCC excels in teaching, learning and empowering more than 40,000 students who attend annually to succeed in a local and global community.  Mesa Community College is one of ten colleges that comprise the Maricopa County Community College District.

Please direct media inquiries to Angela Askey at angela.askey@mesacc.edu or Sally Mesarosh at sally.mesarosh@mesacc.edu  or the Office of Institutional Advancement at 480-461-7445.  IA website:  www.mesacc.edu/ia.

About Phi Theta Kappa                                         

Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, headquartered in Jackson, is the largest honor society in American higher education with more than 1,280 chapters on two-year and community college campuses in all 50 of the United States, Canada, Germany, Peru, the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, the British Virgin Islands, the United Arab Emirates and U.S. territorial possessions. More than 2.5 million students have been inducted since its founding in 1918, with approximately 135,000 students inducted annually.

Source Details

Publication Date: 
Tuesday, March 19, 2013