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USC Phi Beta Kappa home page
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Merits of Membership
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The First Honor Society Formed in the United States in 1776
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The Most Prestigious Undergraduate Honor Society
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Recognized Across All Academic Disciplines as a Mark of Excellence and Academic Distinction<
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Symbol of Integrity and Scholarly Achievement in the Liberal Arts and Sciences
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Mentioned in Biographical Sketches of the Most Accomplished Americans
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Phi Beta Kappa is both the oldest and the most prestigious
undergraduate honor society in the country. Only 10 percent of colleges
in the United States have earned the right to have chapters, and just
over 1 percent of all college seniors are elected each year. To be
elected, a student must have more than a high grade point average.
Chapter members review the academic records of the top 10 percent of
the class, to insure that most credits are earned in the liberal arts
and sciences, in a broad array of subjects, and at an advanced
level.
Phi Beta Kappa was
founded at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA, in
1776, as a society to preserve academic freedom and liberal arts
education. The Greek initials stand for the motto
Philosophia Biou Kybernetes:
"Love of wisdom (is) the (helmsman) guide of life." It has spawned
dozens of imitators that cater to students in specific departments or
to any high achiever on campus. However, membership in Phi Beta Kappa
is universally recognized across all academic disciplines as a mark of
excellence and academic distinction.
The Phi Beta Kappa
key and those who wear it, whether they be presidents, supreme court
justices, diplomats, scientists, or educators, proclaim a centuries-old
commitment to the Society's time-honored principles of friendship,
morality, and learning. It is an enduring symbol of integrity and
scholarly achievement in the liberal arts and sciences that will last
long after memories of college life and other academic honors have
faded.
Unlike other honor
societies affiliated with undergraduate schools, Phi Beta Kappa is
usually the sole honor society mentioned in the biographical sketches
of the most accomplished Americans after their graduation from college.
As an example, when Governor Hodges gave the USC Commencement address
in May, 1999, his Phi Beta Kappa membership was the only undergraduate
honor mentioned by President Palms in his introduction.
There are a number
of meaningful and worthwhile honor societies on campus that students
will receive invitations to join during their college careers. Each one
deserves serious consideration. However, an invitation to join Phi Beta
Kappa is an honor on a completely different tier. Acceptance of
membership in Phi Beta Kappa ensures lifelong recognition of integrity,
scholarly achievement, and excellence. No other undergraduate academic
honor can confer such distinction.
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Well-Known National and Local Members of Phi Beta Kappa
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| Authors |
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Inventors |
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| Samuel Clemens |
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Alexander Graham Bell |
| Michael Crichton |
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South Carolinians |
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Cyrus McCormick |
| Nathaniel Hawthorne |
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Caroline McKissick Dial |
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Samuel Morse |
| Henry W. Longfellow |
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Butler Derrick |
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Eli Whitney |
| James Mitchener |
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Donald J. Greiner |
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| John Updike |
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James H. Hodges |
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William C. Hubbard |
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| Presidents |
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Bob Inglis |
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Public Servants |
| John Quincy Adams |
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Rudy Mancke |
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John C. Calhoun |
| Chester A. Arthur |
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John M. Palms |
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Elizabeth Dole |
| George H. W. Bush |
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John Spratt |
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Oliver Wendell Holmes |
| William J. Clinton |
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Jean H. Toal |
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Henry Kissinger |
| Theodore Roosevelt |
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Nelson Rockefeller |
| William Howard Taft |
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Pat Schroeder |
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