Two Mercer County Community College students were honored by the New Jersey Council of County Colleges during its 19th annual Phi Theta Kappa Day celebration on May 2 at the Trenton Marriott.
Honorees include Melody Hicks of Trenton, who earned her associate degree in business administration in December, and sophomore Anderson Monken of Lawrenceville.
Each year, NJCCC hosts the event to recognize the state’s 40 best community college students as members of the New Jersey All-State Academic Team, who are selected based on grade point average, community service experience, leadership abilities and recommendations from instructors.
The event is sponsored by Phi Theta Kappa, the international honor society for community colleges, the Coca-Cola Foundation and the New Jersey Education Association.
Monken also received a $2,000 New Century Scholarship from the Coca-Cola Foundation for being New Jersey’s top community college student. He and was invited to address the group of students, faculty, and administrators from the state’s 19 community colleges.
“Community college represents a crossroads for anyone who decides to enter our doors,” Monken said during his speech, “while some may call community college a detour, I call it a direct route to success. For each student, community college can be a way out, a way in, and a path to the future.”
Monken’s experience with MCCC began at the age of 10 as a performer at Kelsey Theatre. After a home school education, he began his academic career at Mercer at the age of 16.
He currently serves as president of the Student Government Association and remains active in the Boy Scouts. A liberal arts major concentrating in political and legal systems with a 4.0 GPA, Monken has received a full scholarship to attend Vanderbilt University this fall.
Hicks, an NJ STARS scholar, graduated from MCCC in December with a 4.0 GPA. She served as treasurer of the Alpha Mu Gamma chapter of PTK and treasurer for the Student Government Association.
As member of the Future Business Leaders of America, Hicks placed third in a statewide microeconomic competition and was invited to compete at the organization’s national leadership conference. She also won the National Westminster Bank Scholarship for Business Administration.
Hicks is currently enrolled at The College of New Jersey, where she is majoring in accounting with the goal of becoming a certified public accountant.
More information is online at mccc.edu.
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