Phi Beta Kappa Initiation with Students Posing for Photos

Phi Beta Kappa

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Phi Beta Kappa is the oldest and most prestigious academic honor society in the United States.

Phi Beta Kappa is synonymous with excellence in the liberal arts, and membership in the society is considered to be a great honor. A Phi Beta Kappa key is widely held as an emblem of academic and personal achievement. Davidson is one of only 283 colleges and universities to have a Phi Beta Kappa chapter. As an honorary society, Phi Beta Kappa is not a social group like a fraternity or sorority.

Founded on December 5, 1776, the Phi Beta Kappa Society is as old as our nation, and its symbols, traditions, and motto — “Love of learning is the guide of life”— date back to this time. In the two centuries since its founding, Phi Beta Kappa has continued to promote and celebrate academic achievement.

While Phi Beta Kappa has grown since 1776, it remains highly selective. Each chapter can elect only a small percentage of students to membership.

Davidson College Chapter

The Davidson College Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, Gamma of North Carolina, was established in 1923. It grew out of the Mimir Society, a local society established in 1915 for the recognition of attainment in scholarship.

Since its founding, the chapter has elected over 3,000 students to membership in Phi Beta Kappa. These initiates are among the academic elite and include Rhodes Scholars, Watson Scholars, National Science Foundation Fellowship holders and others who have followed careers in medicine, law, business, ministry, public service, the arts, and academia.

Officers

  • Sydney Adams, Clemson University
  • Peter J. Ahrensdorf, Yale University
  • Catherine Bagwell, University of Richmond
  • Jonathan P. Berkey, Williams College
  • Karen K. Bernd, Franklin and Marshall College
  • Jason Blum, Lafayette College
  • Patricio E. Boyer, Yale University
  • Besir Ceka, Bates College
  • Suzanne W. Churchill, Middlebury College
  • Angela Cools, Pomona College
  • Britta Crandall, Miami University
  • Russell Crandall, Bowdoin College
  • Kevin Davis, Harvard University
  • Andrea C. Duhon, North Carolina State University
  • Cara M. Evanson, Gustavus Adolphus College
  • Maria Fackler, Duke University
  • Mark C. Foley, The College of William and Mary
  • Ann M. Fox, SUNY-Buffalo
  • Stephanie R. Glaser, Davidson College
  • Melissa Gonzalez, Columbia University
  • Jessica J. Good, Washington and Lee University
  • Shyam Gouri Suresh, Trinity College
  • Sharon l. Green, University of Rochester
  • Meghan Griffith, Bucknell University
  • Karen G. Hales, Swarthmore College
  • Catherine Hare, Davidson College
  • Cindy Hauser, Washington and Lee University
  • Daniel Heath, Morehouse College
  • Mary Beth Hernandez, Davidson College
  • Doug Hicks, Davidson College
  • Everett F. Jacobus, Duke University
  • Hanna Key, Grinnell College
  • Carole Kruger, University of North Carolina Greensboro
  • Zoran Kuzamonvich, University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee
  • Jane E. Mangan, Vassar College
  • Margaret R. McCarthy, Connecticut College
  • Kristi S. Multhaup, Gustavus Adolphus College
  • Sarah Phillips, Davidson College
  • Carol E. Quillen, University of Chicago
  • Julio Ramirez, Fairfield University
  • Shelley Rigger, Princeton University
  • Tomasz Robak, Rice University
  • Cort Savage, Indiana University
  • Rose Stremlau, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign
  • Lauren Stutts, Davidson College
  • Sara Swanson, College of the Holy Cross
  • Willa Swenson-Lengyel, St. Olaf College
  • Bryan Thurtle-Schmidt, Indiana University
  • Anita J. Tripathi, Washington University in St. Louis
  • Anne Truetzel, Duke University
  • Onita Vaz-Hooper, University of Southern California
  • Robert Hudson Vincent, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
  • Grace Ward, Davidson College
  • John Wertheimer, Oberlin College
  • David R. Wessner, Franklin and Marshall College
  • Craig J. White, Davidson College
  • Melinda Whittington Bugaiski, UNC Chapel Hill
  • Alice R. Wiemers, Columbia University
  • Anne Blue Wills, Davidson College
  • John N. Yukich, Kenyon College
  • Yan Zhuang, Goucher College    

Emeriti

  • Robin Bruce Barnes
  • Laurence S. Cain
  • Felix A. Carroll
  • C. Earl Edmondson
  • Hansford M. Epes
  • W. Trent Foley
  • Dirk French
  • Lunsford Richardson King
  • John W. Kuykendall
  • Ralph B. Levering
  • Cynthia Lewis
  • Samuel Dow Maloney
  • Mark Richard McCulloh
  • Paul B. Miller
  • Richard D. Neidinger
  • Jeanne M. Neumann
  • Merlyn D. Schuh
  • C. Shaw Smith
  • Robert C. Spach    
  • Mary Caroline Thornberry
  • Mary S. Vasquez
  • T. C. Price Zimmerman

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