(Photo courtesy of Clinton Baugess)
By Clinton Baugess, Secretary of Iota of Pennsylvania Chapter
On Friday, March 29 Phi Beta Kappa inducted 32 new members into the Iota of Pennsylvania chapter of The Phi Beta Kappa Society at Gettysburg College.
Senior students are elected to Phi Beta Kappa by the resident PBK members on campus. In additional to high academic achievement, members consider evidence of intellectual curiosity and academic integrity.
Students inducted on Friday included: Alyssa Beyer, Brittany Bondi, Taylor Buckley, Madelyn Class, Madison Cramer, Andrew Dalton, Celia DiSalvo, Jasmin Eddy, Lisa Fendrick, Olivia Fischer, Natasha Jozefick, Carly Kalis, Michael Karchner, Natalie Kisak, Keira Koch, Jacqueline Kotkiewicz, Christian Lansinger, Aubrey Link, Marion McKenzie, Abigail Morelli, Khun Ohn, Patrycja Okurowski, Aawaz Pokhrel, Brynn Poppe, Rachael Powers, Virginia Sanford, Alexa Soltesz, Stefany Soltesz, Cameron Thompson, Jonathan Tracey, Daniel Valete, and Joshua Wagner.
In May, the following students will be inducted: Ryan Bilger, Elizabeth DeVito, Daphne Ellis, Cartier Jankura, Liam Kerr, and E. Lynn Porta.
The Phi Beta Kappa Society “Book of Members” will now include 32 new members from the Gettysburg College Class of 2019 (Photo courtesy of Clinton Baugess)
The induction ceremony was followed by PBK’s annual banquet in The Atrium, which featured a lecture by Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, Daniel DeNicola. Brittany Bondi was also announced as the recipient of the Charles H. Glatfelter Phi Beta Kappa Leadership Prize.
The prize was established in 1992 to honor the late Charles H. Glatfelter, Professor Emeritus of History at Gettysburg and former President of the Iota chapter. It is awarded to a member of the graduating class for their intellectual leadership during their undergraduate career.
Induction ceremonies are held in October, March, and before commencement in May. The Iota of PA chapter typically elects around 60 students per year, selecting from the top 10% of the class.
Phi Beta Kappa is the oldest and most prestigious academic honor society in the United States. Gettysburg College has sheltered a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa since 1923. At that time, it was the ninth chapter in Pennsylvania. Phi Beta Kappa currently includes 286 chapters at American colleges and universities. The Iota of Pennsylvania chapter has inducted over 3,000 members since 1923.
