Members of College of Western Idaho's Beta Sigma Pi chapter of Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) demonstrated their commitment to environmental stewardship with a pre-Earth Day cleanup event at Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge on Saturday, April 19. Nine CWI students, accompanied by chapter co-advisor Liza Long, spent the morning collecting trash from the lower dam beach area of Lake Lowell.
The service project marks the first time the honor society has organized this type of environmental cleanup event. The initiative was spearheaded by Adrielle Cizmich, Beta Sigma Pi’s Vice President of Service, who coordinated the efforts to help preserve one of Idaho's oldest wildlife refuges.
"Volunteering at the refuge for over a decade has taught me to respect the environment while helping others and benefiting my community. I wanted to share this positive service experience with others," said Cizmich. “Volunteering as a group with PTK was valuable because it allowed us to apply teamwork and enthusiasm as we removed litter from around the refuge, making it cleaner and safer for visitors and wildlife in our community.”
Established in 1909 by President Theodore Roosevelt, Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge protects diverse wildlife habitats including the open waters and wetland edges of Lake Lowell, sagebrush uplands, and surrounding natural areas. The refuge serves as a critical resting and wintering area for birds migrating along the Pacific Flyway.
While Phi Theta Kappa doesn't mandate service requirements for its members, the organization strongly emphasizes service and leadership as core values. These principles are integral to PTK's four hallmarks: Scholarship, Leadership, Service, and Fellowship.
"Community service projects like this give our members practical leadership experience," explained Michal Yadlin, CWI’s Honors Program coordinator and Beta Sigma Pi senior advisor. "It's rewarding to see students apply PTK's values beyond the classroom."
The Beta Sigma Pi chapter has been recognized as one of the top PTK chapters nationally, consistently achieving five-star status — the highest rank for chapters in the honor society. This service event adds to their record of community engagement and leadership development.
Additionally, the chapter hosted the Rocky Mountain regional PTK conference at CWI’s Nampa Campus on April 25-26. The conference brought together PTK members from across the region to participate in leadership development, networking, and educational opportunities. Long gave a presentation on what students should know about academic integrity and artificial intelligence.
For more information about Beta Sigma Pi and future service opportunities, contact the chapter at ptk@cwi.edu.
