Selected seniors will be invited to join Phi Beta Kappa, the leading national honor society for undergraduates, during Senior Week, no sooner than Tuesday evening, often not until Wednesday morning. The spring induction will be held on Friday, May 17, at 10:30 a.m. in the Rosse Hall auditorium.
Phi Beta Kappa was founded on December 5, 1776, by five students at the College of William and Mary. In 1856, the Kenyon chapter, known as Beta of Ohio, was formed by professors John Andrews, Thomas Mather Smith, Hamilton Smith, and Francis Wharton in the living room of Wharton’s home, the building we now know as Sunset Cottage.
Phi Beta Kappa is an active society, supporting many scholarly activities beyond honoring worthy students. To be eligible for election to Phi Beta Kappa, students must have pursued a broad program of study in the liberal arts and sciences and fulfilled other academic criteria as required by the electing chapter. Typically, no more than ten percent of the candidates for degrees in liberal arts and sciences are elected. While important, grades are only one of several criteria considered by the committee.
On the Friday morning of each Commencement Weekend, Kenyon College celebrates the spring induction to Phi Beta Kappa of members of the graduating class. Some institutions choose to base their selection for the final group of candidates on fall semester grades. At Kenyon, the final decision is made after spring semester grades have been submitted to the registrar. While this makes the notification to seniors a rather last-minute affair, it means that seniors are given every possible opportunity to achieve this honor.