Why join Phi Beta Kappa? Some comments for qualified students by Prof. Alex Feingold, President of the Psi Chapter at Binghamton University:</p>
<p>I am sometimes asked by qualified students what is the value of membership in Phi Beta Kappa. That is not a trivial question to answer, especially considering that there is a registration and initiation fee of $65, and that there are other honor societies with different purposes contending for members. We find many people we invite refuse to join because they have never heard of Phi Beta Kappa, they think it has no value to them, or they cannot afford it. I would like to address the issues briefly here, but you should not just take my advice, rather you should ask parents, relatives, other professors, what they think of Phi Beta Kappa and what it means to qualify and join. There is also a website for the national Phi Beta Kappa Society on which more historical information can be found.</p>
<p>First, there are not so many colleges and universities that even have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, and it is not possible to qualify unless your school has a chapter. It was a distinct honor for Harpur College to be granted a charter to open a chapter in 1971, based on a rigorous evaluation of our liberal arts program by a committee of the national organization. Phi Beta Kappa is the oldest liberal arts honor society in the United States (founded in 1776), and set the pattern for many other honor societies. So joining makes you part of a long proud tradition of scholars at the highest level of liberal arts education.</p>
<p>What are some of the benefits of joining? It certainly adds a special polish to your resume, which will be recognized by well-educated people and academics. In fact, if you ever worked as a faculty or staff member at a college or university having a chapter, you could participate in their activities and would be entitled to vote in elections of officers and in the selection of qualified students. You may say that the main activity is the election of new members, to honor their high academic achievements, and that is not so valuable to you personally. But the main purpose of the society is the encouragement and promotion of the liberal arts, which get little other support in this country. So many students are just looking for a job, technical training, but there is a deeper tradition of the value of a liberal arts education to enrich the life of the mind. What other society speaks up for that? We do sometimes have speakers (PBK visiting scholars) give talks on campus, but they are open to the public, not just chapter members. We are not a service organization, nor do we raise money for any charity. We do not have tedious meetings, nor do we have student officers because of the sensitive nature of the academic records which must be examined to determine qualified students. Your initiation and registration fee is a one-time lifetime investment which says that you support liberal arts education, not just technical training, in our university. Most of the fee goes to support the national organization, for the visiting scholar program, scholarly book awards and other national programs for the liberal arts. The rest of the fee is used to pay for the individually printed membership certificates and for our chapter to pay for the annual induction ceremony, reception, and mailing expenses associated with the selection process. None of the chapter officers receive any funds for their work, which is a completely voluntary donation of service to the university by faculty and staff who believe strongly in the value of the liberal arts, and in the strong recognition of excellence in academics. If the fee is a real hardship, some students find relatives who think it is worth it and contribute. I know my parents were very proud when I qualified and were happy to pay the fee, which was much less in 1971, when I qualified at Johns Hopkins University.</p>
<p>Since most students are elected to Phi Beta Kappa in their senior year, it does not allow time for students to do very much as members while at school. But many chapters reach out to members who live nearby, and organize them into groups of Phi Beta Kappa associates who may have intellectually stimulating events. Perhaps you will contact an associates group where you settle after college, or organize a new one, and become as deeply involved in Phi Beta Kappa as you like. Or you can just leave it behind as a final capstone to your academic career.</p>
<p>I hope my comments are of some help to qualified students who are still deciding whether or not to join. If new members have some ideas for activities you would like to see our chapter do, consistent with our philosophy and goals, please contact me personally. Congratulations to all students whose excellent academic work in the liberal arts qualified them for Phi Beta Kappa.
i plan on visiting both, but tally is a bit of a haul from where i am…anyone kno any good sites i could visit? </p>