Mississippi Christian University’s psychology honor society continues to grow after its COVID-19 shutdown.

BY DANIEL PINEDA
September 22, 2026

Official Psi Chi Logo 2026. (Psi Chi image)

The room fills with applause as an undergraduate student walks across the stage and receives his coveted membership in this prestigious organization, Psi Chi, an international honor society for psychology students. He gazes across the packed room to lock eyes with his proud parents, surrounded by professors and peers all clapping their hands in celebration of his achievement. Three  years prior, the honorable organization’s chapter at Mississippi Christian University ceased to exist due to COVID-19 restrictions, but finally, thanks to the hard work of Dr. Drake Terry, the chapter of Psi Chi was back.

Getting the organization back up on its feet was no easy task for Dr. Terry; in fact, it was one of his main assignments when he accepted a teaching job at MC in 2020. Despite the challenge, Dr. Terry was driven to revive the dead organization. No one had to tell him the real value that Psi Chi added to a psychology student’s collegiate experience because the accomplished professor had  once been a member of the organization when he himself was pursuing an undergraduate degree at the same university where he now teaches. “It was a beneficial thing for me, and just being able  to have it on my résumé was a good thing trying to get into grad school, so I wanted our current students to have that same opportunity,” Terry said.

MC’s chapter of Psi Chi was a popular way to get involved on campus before COVID-19, but according to Dr. Terry, the inability to physically meet on campus during the pandemic inevitably shut the university’s chapter down. Even when students were allowed back on campus, opportunities were still limited, and bans on social gatherings had yet to be lifted.

Even considering these challenges with COVID bans, Terry’s largest challenge was educating students on what the organization actually was and how it was run. “Normally, you come into an organization, you just look at what everybody’s already doing, and you can just kind of copy and paste. But these were students who hadn’t seen upperclassmen doing these things before. So there’s a lot of education on the front end — like what Psi Chi is and what the typical events are like,” Terry said.

“Dr. Drake Terry is shown giving a speech at a Psi Chi event. (Psi Chi photo, Mississippi Christian University chapter)

As of 2026, three years from the chapter’s revival, MC’s Psi Chi has received the most interest since its 2023 comeback with 40 active members. Being an honor society, the group requires all members to be psychology majors or minors and to have completed at least nine credit hours in psychology courses with at least a 3.0 GPA in those classes. A ceremony was held to welcome over  20 new members who met these qualifications in August 2026.

Newly inducted Psi Chi members pose for a group photo with Dr. Drake Terry and Psi Chi student officials. (Psi Chi photo,
Mississippi Christian University chapter)

Many students are thankful for the opportunities provided by MC’s chapter of Psi Chi, including 2026 Vice President Bishop Cook, who said, “Psi Chi has been great for connecting me with other  psychology majors and minors and giving us a place to share community with one another. It also helps connect us with professionals and look into different fields within psychology that we may  be interested in.”

This student-led organization allows members like Bishop to gain firsthand leadership experience as well. Shelby Lee Stokes, the other 2026 vice president, shared, “I believe that Psi Chi has  allowed me to network better with my professors as well as engage more fully with fellow psychology majors. MC is amazing in offering so many ways for students to get involved, but that can  sometimes make it difficult to keep up with people that you don’t share a club, tribe, or other organization with. Psi Chi gives me a focused group of people who are facing similar academic struggles as me, as well as navigating things such as graduate school admission and figuring out what comes next within Psychology for us!”

Both Cook and Stokes shared that they hope Psi Chi will continue to offer many more MC students the same opportunities given to them in the years to come. Stokes hopes to offer more networking opportunities for members as well as unique opportunities to tour various psychological facilities such as the Mississippi State Hospital in Whitfield. Cook specifically shared that he  hopes Psi Chi gives members opportunities to connect with professionals after completing their undergraduate degrees.

The success of MC’s chapter of Psi Chi is one marked by determination and an aim for student success by one of its many intentional professors. Psychology students wishing to learn more about  the society can follow MC’s Psi Chi on social media platforms or contact its sponsor, Dr. Drake Terry.