A University of Arkansas at Little Rock student gained valuable leadership skills at the Student Vice President Leadership Summit of Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society in Charlotte, North Carolina. The summit was open to current Phi Kappa Phi student vice presidents of their respective schools who were recommended by their local chapter. 

Abbas Al-Wahhamy, a systems engineering major, attended the summit July 11-14, 2019. The summit brought together vice presidents from Phi Kappa Phi chapters across the country to engage in fun and interactive activities geared toward leadership development. Al-Wahhamy has been a member of Phi Kappa Phi since 2017 and felt very humbled to attend this year’s summit.

“I am very pleased that I was able to represent the University of Arkansas at Little Rock at the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society Student Vice President Leadership Summit. The entire summit was very organized and ran efficiently due to the entire staff that displayed a great sense of customer service and hospitality to all the attendees,” he said.

At the summit, Al-Wahhamy learned how to advertise for his chapter on campus, how to use resources, operate social media, and problem-solving skills.

“My advice for a future vice president that attends this summit is to network,” Al-Wahhamy said. “This experience allowed me to meet a large number of students from around the country and established many friendships that will be long-lasting and career-enhancing as well. The professionalism and maturity of these individuals was impressive.”

Students learned personal growth and enhanced chapter leadership qualities. Individuals also learned about strategies for encouraging and maintaining active chapters of Phi Kappa Phi while developing successful leadership skills necessary for professional development and networking.

“The highlight of the summit was the networking that was conducted among the students that came from all over the United States to learn and meet other student leaders that had a wide range of career interests,” Al-Wahhamy said. “The experience was a very positive one in terms of social and professional networking, and relationship building that will definitely be helpful as I begin to seek employment upon graduation.”