MANHATTAN — More than 90 Kansas State University students, faculty, and alumni are new members of Phi Kappa Phi, the oldest and most prestigious all-discipline honor society.

Phi Kappa Phi recognizes and promotes academic excellence in all fields of higher education and engages the community of scholars in service to others.

The new initiates for 2017 are second semester juniors in the upper 7.5 percent of their class, seniors in the upper 10 percent of their class, or outstanding graduate students in the top 10 percent of their class.

The following students from the local region are new members of Kansas State University’s Phi Kappa Phi chapter:

• Junction City: Amber Pontious, master’s student in teaching
• Abilene: Nichole Monroe, master’s student in educational leadership
• Manhattan: Alexander Brase, senior in mass communications; Kelly Briggs, master’s student in academic advising; Matthew Buckwalter, master’s student in personal financial planning; Andrew Crowder, master’s student in civil engineering; Eric Gray, junior in chemical engineering; Carly Hildebrant Aulicky, doctoral student in biology; Miranda Klugesherz, master’s student in communication studies; Seth Lickteig, doctoral student in curriculum and instruction; Kristina Lyons, master’s student in special education; Bobbi Mcdowell, master’s student in teaching; Chandrika Mitra, master’s student in software engineering; Noortje Notenbaert, master’s student in agronomy; Stephanie Sowell, master’s student in educational leadership; Jennifer Spero, senior in computer science; Noah Trapp, senior in microbiology and pre-medicine; and Emily Warren, master’s student in educational leadership.
• Ogden: Christanna Smith, master’s student in family studies and human services
• Wamego: Kasey Holle, senior in architecture