Induction Ceremony with Candlelight

“Honor is the reward of merit.” –Cicero

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A keynote speaker may precede the ceremony. Popular choices for a keynote speaker include the college president, dean, a faculty member, Psi Chi or Psi Beta advisors, Psi Beta council members, psychologists conducting research at a local university, and Psi Beta alumni.

Items needed:

  • Candles with a holder for each inductee, and an implement for lighting the candles
  • Psi Beta honor cord, medallion, stole and/or tassel for each inductee (induction and graduation items are available from the Psi Beta national office)
  • Certificates of membership, silver plated lapel pins (these items are included in the membership fee and are sent in a single mailing to the chapter’s primary advisor)
  • Registration book and pen
  • Psi Beta banner (from national office) or sign in royal blue and gold
  • Certificate of appreciation for keynote speaker (optional, a certificate template is available)
  • Yellow flowers with blue ribbons: arrangement on stage, small corsages on inductees before the ceremony begins (optional)

Advisor(s), faculty members of Psi Beta, and these Psi Beta officers: President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Induction Officer. (The Induction Officer is usually the chapter’s President unless this is your chapter’s first induction; in that case, the Primary Advisor can serve as the Induction Officer.) Lights in room are either turned off or dimmed. Inductees are called by name either singly or in a group to the front.

Ceremony

INDUCTION OFFICER: Inductee (full name), come forward to receive the congratulations of your peers. (Psi Beta pins and honor cords, medallions or tassels can be given together by the faculty advisor and officers with the membership certificate and card at this time. The faculty advisor lights the candles, which are passed to each inductee.) Inductees, please repeat after me:

INDUCTEES IN UNISON: I, (stating full name), attest that I possess all the requirements for active membership in Psi Beta National Honor Society in Psychology for Community and Junior Colleges. In accepting membership in Psi Beta, I understand and accept the responsibilities which membership entails. On my honor that I pledge to maintain the ideals for which Psi Beta stands to the best of my ability. I further pledge as a member of Psi Beta to actively cooperate in activities and support Psi Beta with my time and resources as may be required.

INDUCTION OFFICER: Honor is the reward of merit. Because of your merit, you have earned the reward of honor. May this candle light your pathway as you seek your goal of academic excellence. Congratulations and welcome to Psi Beta.

New members may sign the registration book.

End of Ceremony

Refreshments or dinner for Psi Beta members and guests usually follow the ceremony.

 

Candlelight Ceremony for Inducting Honorary Charter Member

To be performed immediately before or after the induction ceremony for student and faculty members.

1. Items needed:

  • Candle with a holder for the honorary inductee
  • Psi Beta pin
  • Certificate of honorary membership
  • Pen and registration book

2. Faculty advisor, officers, faculty members of Psi Beta, and induction officer are to be lined up behind head table or on stage for the ceremony.

3. Lights in room are either turned off or dimmed.

4. The honorary member is called by name to the head table or stage by the faculty advisor, president, or induction officer.

Ceremony

1. Induction Officer reads the biography of honorary member candidate.

2. “(Name of the honorary member), please come forward to receive recognition from (Name of College) Psi Beta members for your outstanding contributions and devotion to the field of psychology and Psi Beta.”

3. “Honor is the reward of merit.” (Light a candle and pass it through the hands of Psi Beta members present at the head table.)

4. “Because of your dedication to the field of psychology and Psi Beta, you have been granted the title of Honorary Member of the (Name of College) Psi Beta Chapter. May this candle light your
pathway as you continue to dedicate your life to psychology and education.” (Hand candle to
Honorary Member.)

5. “Congratulations and welcome to Psi Beta. As an honorary member, you may wear the Psi Beta insignia.” (Pin can be given together with the membership certificate at this time. The induction officer reads certificate before presenting it.) “(And you may vote at our Psi Beta chapter
meetings!) Please sign the Psi Beta Book of Membership.”

End of Ceremony

 

Ceremony for New Chapters and Charter Members

A sample ceremony. May be adapted to fit needs of the chapter.

Preliminary Remarks by Installation Officer:

Psi Beta, the national honor society in psychology for community and junior colleges, was founded in 1981 to recognize the scholastic achievements and interests in psychology of two-year college students. Psi Beta provides national recognition and serves as an aid for stimulating interest in psychology as an academic and professional field of endeavor. The knowledge gained from the study of psychology is applicable to any career the student may choose. Through Psi Beta, students feel a sense of community with others in psychology as they learn more about the larger field of psychology. Members are eligible to win national awards in research and community service. But above all, membership in Psi Beta is a well-respected credential for achievement and acknowledges interest in psychology early in one’s educational career. Psi Beta recognizes five classes of members: active, honorary, alumni, inactive, and faculty. The core of any chapter is its active members. These members must be enrolled in a two-year college with a Psi Beta chapter and must have completed at least 12 semester hours total college credit. (If the chapter’s eligibility criteria are more stringent than required by national Psi Beta, the appropriate changes should be noted in this paragraph.) Also, members must have an overall grade average of “B” or better, or the equivalent of ranking in the top 35% of enrolled students, whichever standard is higher, and at least a “B” average in psychology. Active members are privileged to vote, to hold office and to participate in all Psi Beta activities, including paper or poster presentations and national award competitions. They may wear the emblem of the society.

Local chapters elect a president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer and any other officers necessary to plan and implement chapter programs and activities. The duties of these officers are those customarily performed by such officers in any organization. While fulfilling their responsibilities, chapter officers also must maintain their scholastic average in order to hold office and vote. With guidance from the national office, members develop their leadership abilities and reach out to serve their communities.

Inevitably, the active ranks each year will be depleted by graduation and transfers to four-year colleges. This fact emphasizes the importance of having an interested faculty advisor who will serve as guardian of the chapter and officers to mentor the incoming officers.

To be granted a Psi Beta charter is an honor. The charter speaks for the psychology curriculum, the training of the faculty, the college as an institution of higher learning, and the students for their serious and conscientious study of, and interest in, psychology. Eligibility standards are monitored by the Association of College Honor Societies, of which Psi Beta is a member.

I, personally, feel honored to participate in this historic event during the formation of the Psi Beta Chapter at (name of college) Chapter Installation and Charter Member Induction Ceremony

Installation Officer: Will the advisor of the charter group of Psi Beta come forward? (Advisor approaches and stands before the table in front of the installation officer.) You have heard the procedure for obtaining the right to establish a chapter of Psi Beta?

Advisor: I have.

Installation Officer: You have heard the requirements for active membership?

Advisor: I have.

Installation Officer: Do the members whose names appear on the petition meet these requirements?

Advisor: They do.

Installation Officer: You have consented to act as faculty advisor for the group upon its establishment as a regularly organized chapter?

Advisor: I have.

Installation Officer: Do you possess the qualifications required for this trust? Are you interested in maintaining a viable chapter of Psi Beta? Do you understand and agree with the guidelines in the Letter of Understanding for Faculty Advisors?

Advisor: I do.

Installation Officer: Then I welcome you as faculty advisor of the (name of college) Chapter of Psi Beta. You will now take into your charge the materials belonging to the office of the chapter.

(The advisor should have a permanent bound registration book to keep a list of members. The officer materials are handed to the advisor by the Installation Officer– a gavel and chapter copy of Robert’s Rules of Order [optional] for the president; a notebook for chapter programs and activities for the vice-president; a notebook for the agendas, minutes, and committees for the secretary; a book for chapter financial records for the treasurer; a scrapbook for the historian. The advisor takes a seat at the table to the right of the Installation Officer.)

Installation Officer: The members of the charter group have been vouched for by the advisor; we shall now proceed with their induction as active (and alumni) members of Psi Beta. The advisor will now present the candidates for induction.

(The following short induction ceremony is presented for use before the induction of officers when a chapter is being installed, in order that all will first become members.)

Installation Officer: Members of the proposed (name of college) Chapter of Psi Beta, we are here to induct into the fellowship of the national organization this group of candidates whose chapter is a member of Psi Beta. Will the advisor present the candidates?

Advisor: (Name of installation officer), I wish to present to you, as installation officer representing the national organization of Psi Beta, the following candidates who will become active (or alumni) members of the (name of college) Chapter of Psi Beta. I recommend these candidates to you because I believe they possess an interest in the science of psychology and show promise in the field by their academic records. (Advisor reads the names of candidates. As the names are read, candidates take their place before the installation officer and the advisor.)

Installation Officer: Candidates, please repeat after me:

Candidates: I, (stating full name) attest that I possess all the requirements for active membership in Psi Beta National Honor Society in Psychology for Community and Junior Colleges. In accepting membership in Psi Beta, I understand and accept the responsibilities which membership entails. On my honor, I pledge to maintain the ideals for which Psi Beta stands to the best of my ability. I further pledge as a member of Psi Beta to actively cooperate in activities and support Psi Beta with my time and resources as may be required.

Installation Officer: You are now members of the (name of college) Chapter of Psi Beta in evidence of which you will receive a membership certificate, card, and pin. In assuming the privileges and responsibilities of your memberships and offices, you have created this chapter. Those of you who are becoming members at this date are the charter members of this chapter. Evidence of the existence of this chapter is embodied in this charter, granted by Psi Beta and signed by the National President and Executive Director, which I present to your chapter. (Present the charter to the advisor). To you is entrusted the care of this charter. When your term of office expires, you will entrust it to your successor, and so on down the line as long as the chapter exists. May your chapter always be guided by capable leaders.

Induction of chapter officers takes place at this time. 
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Psi Beta
Certified member of the National Association of College Honor Societies, Affiliate of the American Psychological Association, and Affiliate of the American Psychological Society