Love of Learning is the Guide of Life

Phi Beta Kappa was founded at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia in 1776. It is the oldest and most prestigious national academic honorary society, which for more than 240 years has recognized high academic achievement (top 5-10 % of a graduating class) by students who pursue both a broad and substantive liberal arts curriculum. Selection to membership, therefore, is based not solely upon the evidence of achievement as measured by grades, but also upon the Chapter’s belief that a program of study has been consonant with the Society’s aims. There is no monetary award associated with election.

According to the national website, Phi Beta Kappa “celebrates and advocates excellence in the liberal arts and sciences. Its campus chapters invite for induction the most outstanding arts and sciences students at America’s leading colleges and universities. The Society sponsors activities to advance these studies — the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences — in higher education and in society at large.”

The Kansas Alpha chapter marks its year with a handful of activities:

• Since 2017, we have presented the First-Year Book Award.
• We occasionally host a Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Scholar.
• We meet throughout the year with the prior year's elected students still in residence for the election of student officers, as well as for informal activities.