Phi Beta Kappa Inducts 50 Gettysburg College Seniors

Posted By Gettysburgian Staff on Jun 12, 2020 | 1 comment

(Photo courtesy of Clinton Baugess)

By Clinton Baugess, Secretary of Iota of Pennsylvania Chapter

On May 27 the Iota of Pennsylvania Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa inducted 50 new members into the Society through a virtual ceremony, a first in its nearly 100-year history at Gettysburg College. The ceremony featured a modified version of the traditional program and included recorded congratulatory remarks from President Iuliano.

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 included: Joseph Accetta, Meredith Amato, Caitlin Apple, Nicholas Arbaugh, Liza Barr, Kevin Benavente, Amanda Benfante, Claire Benstead, Cailin Casey, Emily Ciancimino, Charles Clewis, Abigail Coakley, Julia Coddington, Michaela Crow, Rachel Crowe, Kelly Curran, David DeBole, Paige Deschapelles, Tess Fernald, Caleigh Flegg, Shannon Fletcher, Frank Fortino, Benjamin Fruchtl, Jessica Greenman, Abigail Greer, Lauren Hand, Allison Hermann, Shiyu Li, Breana Lohbusch, Rachel Loney, Claire Macatee, Cory Madison, Tyler Mann, Kenneth McCracken, Sofia Mouritsen, Holly O’Malley, Otis Pierce, Cassandra Pritt, Maureen Pulte, Erin Schroeder, Alexa Secrest, Luke Seyfert, Ryan Smolik, Julia Soares, Keyleigh Wallick, Holly Wentworth, Zachary Wesley, Emily Wielk, Claire Woodward, and Megan Zierold.

The induction ceremony included the announcement of Benjamin Pontz ’20 as the recipient of this year’s Charles H. Glatfelter Phi Beta Kappa Leadership Prize for his significant contributions to campus life at Gettysburg, notably at The Gettysburgian, the Eisenhower Institute, Musselman Library, and the marching band. 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.

PBK induction ceremonies are held in October, March, and before commencement in May. The Iota of Pennsylvania chapter typically elects around 60 students per year, selecting from the top 10% of the graduating 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 290 chapters at American colleges and universities, and the Iota of Pennsylvania chapter has inducted over 3,000 members since 1923.