The Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honor society with the mission of "fostering and recognizing excellence" in undergraduate liberal arts and sciences. Founded at the College of William and Mary on December 5, 1776, it is the oldest such society in the United States. Membership is granted to approximately 1% of college graduates, and today there are 270 chapters and over half a million living members. Since election to the Society occurs on a school-by-school basis, membership standards are not uniform; nevertheless, no member school may induct more than 10% of its graduating class (most chapters invite a significantly smaller percentage to membership). As such, Phi Beta Kappa is generally considered to be the most selective and prestigious of all college honor societies and election to membership one of the highest honors available to undergraduate collegians.
Phi Beta Kappa (ΦÎ'Κ) stands for or philosophia biou kybernetes â€" "love-of-wisdom steerer of life."
Student associations of a social nature were formed hundreds of years ago in European universities. These student groups, guilds and other social, literary, and religious associations, existed in Europe over many centuries and in many forms. By the time colleges were founded in the American colonies, however, nearly all traces of student organizations and independence in lifestyle had been eliminated. Thus, the institution of American college Greek-letter fraternities is the unique development of American students.
Of the nine colonial colleges established in the 1600's and 1700's, the College of William and Mary was the most prominent and had the best classroom and residential buildings. Founded in 1693, it is second in age only to Harvard. It was at William and Mary, during the Revolutionary War that the first Greek-letter college fraternity was established.
When the Declaration of Independence was read in Philadelphia on July 4, 1776, it proclaimed the right of the colonials to have government of the people, by the people, and for the people. Adoption of that galvanizing idea soon reached Williamsburg, a hotbed of agitation for independence. The flame of revolution spread among students at William and Mary, and they were eager to discuss the burning issues of the day especially topics more directly affecting student life.
However, the opportunity for students to form a group and to debate any issue was severely restricted within college walls, so students gathered in the Apollo Room of the Raleigh Tavern in Williamsburg for the limited discussions which were possible. In this atmosphere on December 5, 1776, five close and trusted friends remained after other students returned to campus. They formed the first Greek-letter society in North America. The name they chose was Phi Beta Kappa.
It is believed that Phi Beta Kappa grew out of an older organization, founded in 1750, named the Flat Hat Society. Phi Beta Kappa was, of necessity, a secret society. To protect its members, it had all of the attributes of the most modern fraternities - - an oath of secrecy, a badge or key, mottos in Greek, an initiation and a handshake.
Before the British invasion of Virginia forced closure of the College of William and Mary in early 1781, other branches of Phi Beta Kappa had been established in new England colleges. From them, Phi Beta Kappa evolved from a fraternity with principally academic and some social purposes to an entirely honorary organization recognizing scholastic achievement. While Phi Beta Kappa developed the distinctive characteristics of Greek-letter fraternities, it was left to other students to fill the natural human need for fellowship with kindred students by extension of fraternity to a social context.
ΦΒΚ thus began as a men's secret literary, social, and philosophical society at the College of William and Mary in 1776. The second chapter was established at Harvard University on December 4, 1779, and the third at Yale University on December 8 of the same year. Subsequent chapters were established at Dartmouth College in 1787, Union College in 1817, Bowdoin College in 1825, and Brown University in 1830. Secrecy was abandoned in 1831 during a period of strong anti-Masonic sentiment. The first chapter established after becoming an 'open' society was at Trinity College in 1845.
As the first collegiate organization of its type to adopt a Greek-letter name, it is generally considered the forerunner of modern college fraternities as well as the model for later honor socities. Ironically, it was partly the rise of true "social" fraternities modeled after Phi Beta Kappa later that century which obviated the social aspects of membership in the organization, transforming it into the honor society it is today.
By 1883, when the United Chapters of Phi Beta Kappa were established, there were 25 chapters. The first women were elected to the society at the University of Vermont in 1875, and the first African-American member was elected at the same institution two years later.
Each chapter is designated by its state and a Greek letter indicating the order in which that state's chapters were founded. For example, Alpha of Pennsylvania refers to the chapter at Dickinson College (1887); Beta of Pennsylvania at Lehigh University (1887); Gamma of Pennsylvania at Lafayette College (1890); and Delta of Pennsylvania at the University of Pennsylvania (1892).
In 2005, a controversy surrounding the revocation of a speaking invitation to filmmaker and activist Michael Moore derailed the membership application of George Mason University. Economics Professor James Bennett, faculty senate chairman, was disappointed by the decision, telling the Washington Post that "Phi Beta Kappa is the ultimate recognition of undergraduate academic achievement. We owe it to our students [to establish a chapter]." * George Mason will become eligible for consideration again in 2008.
The symbol of the Phi Beta Kappa Society is a gold key engraved with the image of a pointing finger and three stars. These represent the ambition of the young scholars and the three distinguishing principles of the Society: friendship, morality, and learning. On the back of the key are the initials "SP," which stand for the Latin words "societas philosophiae."
The Phi Beta Kappa Society publishes a quarterly newsletter called The Key Reporter which is distributed to all members. It also funds a number of fellowships and academic awards.
A May 26, 1996 article in the New York Times* entitled "Phi Beta Kappa Being Turned Down by Many Honorees" noted that some students were turning down membership in the Society because they had never heard of it. Virtually all of the 27 chapters that reported acceptance rates under 90% were at large state universities.
At private universities and small liberal arts colleges, however, election to Phi Beta Kappa remains one of the highest honors a student can receive, and the few membership offers extended are almost universally accepted. According to the Times article, the vast majority of chapters report acceptance rates well over 90%.
