Monroe resident joins Phi Kappa Phi

Monroe's Sam Schelfhout has been initiated into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi at the University of Texas at Austin. Schelfhout is one of 30,000 students, faculty, professional staff and alumni to be nominated and approved by a chapter of the nation's oldest collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines.

Schelfhout is a graduate student at the University of Texas, who is studying for his master's degree in sport management. He expects to graduate in 2017. He received a bachelor's degree in 2014 from the University of Portland, where he studied political science and economics.

Phi Kappa Phi was founded at the University of Maine in 1897 and headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Notable members include former President Jimmy Carter, NASA astronaut Wendy Lawrence, novelist David Baldacci and YouTube cofounder Chad Hurley.