Phi Kappa Phi inducts 152 members, announces nine fellowships

Phi Kappa Phi chapter 021 at the University of Wisconsin–Madison has inducted 152 students into membership at its 99th Phi Kappa Phi Induction Ceremony.

The ceremony was held on April 14 in Tripp Commons, Memorial Union. The keynote speaker was Emily Auerbach, professor of English and director of the UW–Madison Odyssey Project.

Honorary membership was granted to four UW–Madison faculty and staff: Ullrich Langer, a Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor of French; psychology professor Jenny Saffran; social work professor Tracy Schroepfer; and Shari Smith, senior student services coordinator in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis in the School of Education.

Phi Kappa Phi also announced that nine UW–Madison students are the recipients of the Zillman Summer Research Fellowship. Zillman Fellowships are designed to encourage students from a variety of disciplines to enrich their educational programs through summer projects involving study, research, travel, and training that is not part of a formal curriculum.

This year’s graduate student fellows are Esther Bettney, curriculum and instruction; Regina Fuller, educational policy studies; Tarsha Herelle, educational policy studies; Justyn Huckleberry, environment and resources; and Elizabeth Neary, Spanish. The undergraduate fellows are Ryan Brown, genetics & genomics; Claire Evensen, biochemistry and applied mathematics; Hunger Gage, biology; and Luquant Singh, applied mathematics, engineering & physics.

A list of new members is available here. 

Phi Kappa Phi was founded in 1897 at the University of Maine by a group of students who felt a need for an honor society that would recognize excellence across the whole range of academic disciplines.

Under the leadership of student Marcus L. Urann, the group formed the Lambda Sigma Eta Society, later renamed Phi Kappa Phi from the letters of the Greek words forming its motto, Philosophìa Krateìto Photôn, “Let the love of learning guide humanity.” Today, Phi Kappa Phi recognizes and promotes academic excellence in all fields of higher education and engages the community of scholars in service to others.

The UW–Madison chapter of Phi Kappa Phi was founded in 1920 and has had a continuous presence on this campus ever since. Each fall invitations are sent to the top 10 percent of graduate students, the top 10 percent of seniors and the top 7.5 percent of second-semester juniors in each school and college.