168 students inducted into Phi Beta Kappa

On Saturday, April 13, 168 University of Wisconsin–Madison Letters & Science undergraduates were inducted to the Phi Beta Kappa (ΦΒΚ) academic society, in a ceremony at Varsity Hall in Union South with 350 attending.

UW–Madison’s ΦΒΚ chapter, founded in 1899, seeks to honor students who rigorously explore the sciences, arts and humanities.

L&S Dean Eric M. Wilcots led the opening procession and welcome. Chapter President David W. Johnson, economics, hosted the celebration’s 125^th year of the founding of the UW–Madison chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. Special guest and president of the national Phi Beta Kappa Society Peter Quimby PhD’99 presented the history of ΦΒΚ. ΦΒΚ stands for philosophia biou kubernetes, which translates to “the love of wisdom is the helmsman of life.”

In addition to the induction of new undergraduate members, the ceremony also honored four individuals for their contributions to UW–Madison:

• Chancellor Jennifer L. Mnookin was inducted into the chapter as an honored member. “These are the people we will look to for new ideas, new ways forward, and new hope for the future in a world that is far too polarized,” Mnookin said. “And these are the students we celebrate today.”
• Jimena González, a member of the UW–Madison chapter of the Edward A. Bouchet Society and a PhD candidate in Physics (observational cosmology), accepted ΦΒΚ’s graduate student induction invitation.
• Jairo Villalona, a member of the UW–Madison chapter of the Edward A. Bouchet Society and a PhD candidate in Chemistry (engineering enzymes), accepted ΦΒΚ’s graduate student induction invitation.
• Allison Prasch, associate professor of Communication Arts, received the chapter’s 2024 Excellence in Teaching Award. Inductee and senior Sarah Nehls presented Professor Prasch with the award. “Dr. Prasch has demonstrated an unparalleled commitment to advancing the field of rhetorical scholarship, but what truly sets her apart is her unwavering dedication to student success,” Nehls said. “I can personally attest to her investment in the wellbeing and academic success of her students, and I know that my experience is not unique.”

Inductees excel in all areas of study, ranging from physics to anthropology, and they must have a cumulative GPA of 3.80 or above and meet strenuous math, language, and breadth requirements.

A committee of faculty and staff review the student record for nomination into the chapter. Inductees have a love for learning in multiple areas of study at the intermediate and advanced levels, exploring far beyond their major area of study at UW–Madison.

The students inducted were:

Lindsey Adams, Greenfield, WI

Ellie Asher, Washington, DC

Jacky Bai, Nanchang, CHN

Sofia Benson, New Rochelle, NY

Grace Berglin, Hartland, WI

Laura Bettenhausen, Madison, WI

Cole Bielby, Madison, WI

Ian Bohachek, Cross Plains, WI

Axell Boomer, South Beloit, IL

Benjamin Braiman, Windsor, CO

Caelan Brown, Madison, WI

Colby Brown, Southampton, PA

Jonathan Bryan, Appleton, WI

Leah Bulbula, Madison, WI

Danielle Bullock, Baraboo, WI

Yee Cao, Shaoxing, CHN

Taylor Cataldi, Corona, CA

Dominic Catherino, Washington, DC

Will Cerne, Sun Prairie, WI

Vicky Chan, Elizabethtown, PA

Scott Chang, Hartland, WI

Yuxin Chen, Chengdu, CHN

Wyatt Cirbo, Denver, CO

Maddie Crist, Darlington, WI

Ellie DeCleene, Menomonee Falls, WI

Elliot Delfosse, Middleton, WI

Mya Delgado, Mauston, WI

Nettie Dellheim, Williams Bay, WI

Alec Easton, New York, NY

Katie Ellman, Carol Stream, IL

Charlotte Erenberg, Trumbull, CT

Charlie Fahey

Ryan Feiertag, Cedarburg, WI

Audrey Feuerer, Hudson, WI

Patrick Frey, Natick, MA

Brenna Fricke, Minocqua, WI

Emma Gallian, Chicago, IL

Ezra Ge, Ningbo, CHN

Caitlynn Gehl, Kimberly, WI

Bradyn Gentile, Neenah, WI

Sarah Gesner, Racine, WI

Zachary Golden, Cherry Hill, NJ

Kaitlyn Goldstein, Chesterfield, MO

William Griffin, South Bend, IN

Isaiah Grove, Eagle, WI

Haakon Gulbrandsen, Minong, WI

Abigail Guthrie, Caledonia, IL

Thomas Hadcock, Mequon, WI

Cade Heinberg, Marengo, IL

Michael Hepfinger, Cottage Grove, WI

Madeline Herndon, Madison, WI

Ellen Herrald, Thornton, CO

Haley Hodek, Neenah, WI

Paige Hooper, North Freedom, WI

Lynda Huang, Green Bay, WI

Mia Hughes, Madison, WI

Harris Jacobs, Atlanta, GA

Zoe Jaeger, Burbank, CA

Sania Jain, Mumbai, India

Trisha James, Madison, WI

Kristen Jenkins, Menomonee Falls, WI

Zeke Jeske, Madison, WI

Xinlin Jiang, Chengdu Sichuan, CHN

Kendall Johnson, Ellendale, MN

Maggie Kahn, La Grange, IL

Arianna Kaplan, Los Angeles, CA

Mariana Kapp, New York, NY

Nicholas Kowalski, Waukesha, WI

Kierstyn Krauss, Madison, WI

Pranav Krishnan, Madison, WI

Caitlin Kulperger, Belvedere Tiburon, CA

Steven Lai, Bellevue, WA

Kerry Lannon, Hellertown, PA

Zoe Larson, Albuquerque, NM

Kelsey Last, Madison, WI

Yuval Lerman, Saint Paul, MN

Claudia Liverseed, Madison, WI

Rachel Lopez, Oconomowoc, WI

Claire Lorman, Middleton, WI

Garrett Lublin, Sherman Oaks, CA

Thatcher Maconga, Wellesley, MA

Abby Maechling, Chicago, IL

Avery Markowski, Waukee, IA

Matthew Masonius, Shrewsbury, NJ

Olivia Masterson, Iowa City, IA

Kellan McCann, Brooklyn, NY

Matt Mello, Fitchburg, WI

Anna Melnyk, Minneapolis, MN

Alex Michie, Zionsville, IN

Olivia Miller, Ocean Grove, NJ

Regan Mitchell, Menomonee Falls, WI

Maddie Moher, Burnsville, MN

Trisha Nandakumar, Brookfield, WI

Sameer Narendran, Warren, NJ

Sarah Nehls, Fredonia, WI

Sofia Notch, Inver Grove Heights, MN

Molly O’Connor, Bethesda, MD

Jack Olson, Milwaukee, WI

Lexi Orjuela, Batavia, IL

Jinwan Park, Busan, KOR

Zachary Paronto, Madison, WI

Kamika Patel, Madison, WI

Autumn Payette, Oconto Falls, WI

Haley Polzin, Whitefish Bay, WI

Samuel Pomerantz, Ambler, PA

Ali Pope, Waterford, WI

Sonny Powers, Middleton, WI

Sunshine Prost, West Bend, WI

Annie Pulley, Stoughton, WI

Holly Puza, Rhinelander, WI

Lucy Pyne, Milwaukee, WI

Olivia Rich, Chicago, IL

Anna Rifkin, Buffalo, NY

Hannah Rifkin, Cos Cob, CT

Tom Rosen, Chesterfield, MO

Max Rountree, Fairfax, VA

Eleanor Sand, Minneapolis, MN

Preethi Saravanan, Chesterfield, MO

Zoe Sattar, Madison, WI

Eden Schachter, Dallas, TX

Odin Schaepkens, Brookfield, WI

Oliver Schlesinger, New York, NY

Marni Schneider, Deerfield, IL

Jess Schnoll, Chicago, IL

Murphy Schoenecker, Minneapolis, MN

Aspen Schrupp, Excelsior, MN

Abigail Schuman, Denver, CO

Mac Seiler, Onalaska, WI

Evie Sellers, Franklin, WI

Amitabha Shatdal, Madison, WI

Julia Sikowitz Lee, Brooklyn, NY

Carly Silver, Woodbridge, CT

Mira Singh, Oak Creek, WI

Isabella Smith, Northfield, MN

Gracen Spritka, Sturgeon Bay, WI

Alexandra Stamatakos, Chicago, IL

Sara Stanislawski, Wauwatosa, WI

Sophie Stein, Saint Paul, MN

Noah Strube, Mount Horeb, WI

Unsa Syed, Waunakee, WI

Yuxin Tang, Xilinguole League, CHN

Ben Tietjen, Minneapolis, MN

Annika Utoft, Edina, MN

Jamie Vacca, Weston, CT

Benjamin VerHagen, Kenosha, WI

Amina Waheed, Verona, WI

Charles Walter, West Bend, WI

Leo Wang, Beijing, CHN

Dylan Warnecke, Wausau, WI

Madison Weiner, Minneapolis, MN

Holly West, Carlisle, MA

Alexandra White, Onalaska, WI

Brooke Wiley, Scottsdale, AZ

Kamryn Witkowiak, Muskego, WI

Natalie Wolff, Marietta, GA

Kelly Wu, Madison, WI

Estelle Xiao, Urumqi, CHN

Yingying Xie, Beijing, CHN

Gracie Zeller, Oshkosh, WI

William Zeng, Westford, MA

Lianxin Zhang, Zhengzhou, CHN

Amy Zhao, Madison, WI

Tian Zhao, Zhuji, CHN

Natalia Zvereva, Madison, WI

Tyler Katzenberger, Marshfield, WI

El Muratoglu, Lake Forest, IL

Tim Sands, La Grange Park, IL

Aaron Zhang, Prairie du Sac, WI