KU chapter of Phi Beta Kappa initiates 82 new members
LAWRENCE — The University of Kansas Alpha chapter of Phi Beta Kappa academic honor society has initiated 82 new members.
Jennifer Harrison, president of KU’s Phi Beta Kappa chapter and director of the Business Leadership Program and Jack Dicus Business Honors Program, presided at the May 14 ceremony. Initiates were individually recognized, presented with a certificate of membership and invited to sign their names in the chapter register — a tradition that dates to 1912.
Charlie Bankart, KU’s senior internationalization officer, was inducted as an honorary member of Phi Beta Kappa and delivered remarks on the value of the liberal arts and sciences. 2021 Phi Beta Kappa inductee Aylar Atadurdyyeva, graduating senior in political science, microbiology, global & international studies and Slavic studies, gave the student response.
Election to Phi Beta Kappa recognizes a student’s high academic achievement while pursuing a broad and substantive liberal arts curriculum. To be eligible for consideration for membership, students must be seniors with a minimum grade-point average of 3.65 on a 4.0 scale, or be juniors with a minimum 3.9. Anonymous transcripts of candidates are reviewed holistically by a committee of Phi Beta Kappa faculty and staff members.
Phi Beta Kappa, the oldest national academic honorary society, was founded Dec. 5, 1776, at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. KU’s Alpha chapter, founded in 1890, was the first chapter west of the Mississippi and is one of 286 Phi Beta Kappa chapters nationwide. About 10% of institutions of higher learning in the United States have Phi Beta Kappa chapters. The chapter’s vice president is Dietrich Earnhart, professor of economics and director of the Center for Environmental Policy. The secretary-treasurer is Harry Swartz, assistant director of admissions for the University Honors Program. Sarah Crawford-Parker, director of the University Honors Program, serves as the chapter’s historian.
Elected members are listed below:
- Katherine Ahern, Lawrence
- Mateus Arruda Pinto Bandeira, São Luís, Brazil
- Rebecca Bachmuth, Overland Park
- Lane Barrette, Basehor
- Camden Baxter, Andover
- Brooke Binger, Lee’s Summit, Missouri
- Madeline Blake, Assaria
- Claire Bowman, Berryton
- Taylor Bridge, Wildwood, Missouri
- Jocelyn Brown, Richardson, Texas
- Irene Caracioni, Topeka
- Carson Cargill, Isabel
- August Chowning, Lenexa
- Daniel Cluff, Topeka
- Claire Cox, Paola
- Lauren Dandreo, Ottawa
- Angela Davis, Olpe
- Amber Dial, Pittsburg
- Johnny Dinh Phan, Overland Park
- Sydney Ebner, Shawnee
- Gabby Fischer, Salina
- Natalie Garcia Rojas, Dodge City
- Anika Goel, Lawrence
- Audrey Grabmeier, Shawnee
- Thomas Guier, Lawrence
- Sophia Hady, Lawrence
- Allie Haggar, Lincoln, Nebraska
- Ginny Hannahan, Fairhope, Alabama
- Samuel Harder, Wichita
- Henry Haw, Mission Hills
- Beth Heimann, Centralia, Missouri
- Tian Heinle, Dayton, Ohio
- Ximena Ibarra, Pittsburg
- Nicolas James, Overland Park
- Reya Johnson, Lincoln, Nebraska
- Molly Kaemmer, Overland Park
- George Kircher, Overland Park
- Haley Kucera, Topeka
- Audrey Lehmann, Manchester, Missouri
- Tim Lewis, Lawrence
- Meredith Loehr, Topeka
- Kaitlyn Lorbiecki, Woodbury, Minnesota
- Emma Maher, Owatonna, Minnesota
- James McFarlin, Overland Park
- Josh Mcghee, Olathe
- Tonielle Miller, Emporia
- Joe Mirakian, Olathe
- Noah Mruckovski, St. Louis, Missouri
- Umar Nasim, Overland Park
- Bella Neuman, Chesterfield, Missouri
- Rachell Orce, Manhattan
- Albert Park, Overland Park
- Hannah Pennington, St. Louis, Missouri
- Meaghan Peters, Overland Park
- Maddie Petrauskas, Oswego, Illinois
- Sarah Reichart, Andale
- Audrey Rips-Goodwin, Overland Park
- Dylan Robertson, Lenexa
- Karryn Robinson, Overland Park
- Michelle Roesner, Dallas, Texas
- Hannah Roth, Cleveland, Ohio
- Gabriela Ruiz, Overland Park
- Aalana Samuels, Lawrence
- Salem Sanfilippo Solin, Manhattan
- Juliette Schulte, St. Louis, Missouri
- Michael Scott, Glenview, Illinois
- Katie Shipley, Evergreen, Colorado
- Sarah Sinelli, Denver, Colorado
- Tanya Singh, Manhattan
- Landon Sloan, Lawrence
- Rachel Stander, Olathe
- Caroline Steele, Olathe
- Ezra Steinshouer, Baldwin City
- Riley Stowers, Gilbert, Arizona
- Shayla Sturgis, Columbus
- Lauren Tubal, Salina
- Bhavini Uppalapu, Lawrence
- Katie Vanbeber, Overland Park
- Sarah Vesely, Aurora, Illinois
- Savannah Warren, Oskaloosa
- Allison Wenger, Tulsa, Oklahoma
- Taylor Winters, Manchester, Missouri.