- Good evening.
Welcome to the 173rd annual Spring meeting
of the Alpha of Vermont chapter of Phi Beta Kappa!
We are delighted to have you with us virtually today
to celebrate the induction of new members.
My name is Meredith Niles,
and I am a professor in Nutrition and Food Sciences
and the Chapter President.
Today's ceremony will include a welcome message
from UVM Provost, Patty Prelock,
the presentation of the Bogorad Award, the Chapter History,
the administration of the Phi Beta Kappa Oath
to our new inductees, individual recognition of each student
and introduction to the society symbols,
a remembrance of chapter members
who've passed away in the last year,
and some concluding remarks for me.
We anticipate that the ceremony will last
45 minutes to one hour.
Closed captioning is available via the link in the Q&A.
A recording of the ceremony will also be available
to stream within a day or two of the ceremony.
We will send students a link to that via email.
Many thanks to the several UVM faculty and staff members
who have contributed to successful operations
of her chapter this year.
Our chapter has existed for more than 170 years.
So we have a great deal of practice
running induction ceremonies.
However, virtual ceremonies are a relatively new thing
for us and we have opted for a live event
so we can be together and focus on students'
outstanding academic achievements.
We ask for your patience as we endeavor to get
all of the technology to cooperate
with our aspirations for today's ceremony.
With everything being in readiness,
I declare this meeting open.
The present induction ceremony occurs
in the 173rd year of this chapter's existence.
Phi Beta Kappa has indeed been represented
we think continuously in some form at this institution
since the arrival in autumn of 1799 of our first president
the Reverend Daniel Clarke Sanders,
who was elected to Phi Beta Kappa at Harvard in 1788.
More recently, one of our chapter's most ardent supporters
on campus has been Professor Patty Prelock
who first joined us in her capacity as dean
of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences.
Now she is UVM's Provost and Senior Vice President
and we are delighted to have her with us this evening.
We now invite Provost Prelock
to say a few words to our assembly.
- Thank you, Professor Niles
for inviting me to be here today
to honor and celebrate our students.
And as you said, this is one of my favorite ceremonies
to honor our amazing students.
On behalf of President Suresh Garimella
and the entire faculty and staff
of the university of Vermont,
I would like to welcome everyone to this year's
Phi Beta Kappa induction ceremony.
We are here this evening to celebrate a group of students
who have done so many amazing things in the classroom,
in the laboratory, on stage,
online, in the community, and in the world.
Phi Beta Kappa is the country's
oldest academic honor society
and it recognizes students'
superlative academic accomplishments
across a range of liberal arts disciplines.
To be elected, students need to have studied languages,
literature, arts, humanities,
and social mathematical and natural sciences.
And their transcripts reflect deep and sustained engagement
in a variety of disciplines.
Phi Beta Kappa students love to learn,
and that love of learning will not stop with graduation.
Phi Beta Kappa students are also creative
and critical thinkers,
able to see things from multiple perspectives
and forge meaningful syntheses.
To many employers and graduate admissions committees,
seeing Phi Beta Kappa on a resume or CV
speaks volumes about what an applicant has accomplished,
what skill sets you have
that will facilitate success in your job
and what excellent things are yet to come in your career.
As I mentioned before, this is always
one of my favorite academic ceremonies to attend
because it celebrates what higher education is all about;
creating opportunities for students
to expand their thinking, their diversity of thought
and their ability to solve problems.
To those of you who will become members
of Phi Beta Kappa this evening,
my most sincere congratulations.
I am so very proud of all of you
and all that you have accomplished.
To those of you here cheering on these exceptional students,
thank you for taking the time
to recognize their marvelous achievements.
Congratulations again, students, you are amazing
and to your families who have supported you
throughout this educational journey,
thank you and congratulations.
- Thank you, Provost Prelock for being here with us today.
The chapter would also like to extend its thanks to you
and UVM President Suresh Garimella
for continuing the long standing UVM presidential tradition
of providing the membership fees
for students to join the national society.
This generosity allows for all UVM students
who are elected to Phi Beta Kappa
to accept this valuable and important honor.
Before proceeding with the initiation of members in course,
there is an important item of business to attend to.
The presentation of the Bogorad Award,
here to explain the award and make the presentation
is Professor Bryn Geffert,
Professor of History and Dean of Libraries at UVM.
- Thank you, Professor Niles.
Each year, the chapter selects
as recipient of a special award,
one of two people for outstanding achievement
in the program of liberal arts,
based on the academic record
through the end of the sophomore year.
This prize is named in honor of Samuel Nathaniel Bogorad,
a long time friend and affiliate of the chapter.
Sam Bogorad was elected to Phi Beta Kappa
at Brown University in 1939.
He came to Burlington as a new member of the faculty in 1946
and he served eight years
as chair of the English department,
holding the course professorship
in English language and literature
at his retirement in 1982.
Until his death in December of 1993,
Sam remained an active member of the university family.
For many years, Sam claimed for himself
the privilege of bestowing Phi Beta Kappa Keys
on new initiative, excuse me, on new initiates,
thus being the first to congratulate them
on the distinction they achieved.
The recipient of this year's Bogorad Award is Moira Mahoney.
Moira is an English major and a double minor
in computer science and philosophy from Sayville, New York.
on behalf of the officers and members of Alpha of Vermont,
I offer congratulations for the moment
and express the confident expectation
that we shall welcome you next year
as a member in course of Phi Beta Kappa.
Congratulations, Moira.
- Congratulations, Moira
and thank you Dean Geffert.
Fellow members of Phi Beta Kappa and honored guests,
we are assembled for the purpose
of welcoming into the membership of our society
certain undergraduates who haven't been duly elected
by this chapter,
desire to be admitted to its privileges and opportunities.
The members elect,
having signified the acceptance of their election
are ready to present themselves for initiation.
To our students, you are being offered membership
in Phi Beta Kappa in admission to the society's
ever widening the circle.
Before giving your pledge of loyalty
and it is proper that you be informed
more fully respecting Phi Beta Kappa's history,
ideals and purposes.
In order that you may know the character
and underlying principles of Phi Beta Kappa,
please give attention to the reading of extracts
from the constitution of this chapter
by Professor Abby McGowan, Professor of History
and Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
- Welcome all and congratulations again.
Glad to be here for this part of the ceremony.
Since the founding of the Alpha Chapter of Virginia in 1776,
Phi Beta Kappa has been the exponent of devotion
to friendship, morality, and literature.
For more than 170 years, our local chapter,
the Alpha of Vermont has endeavored to uphold
the high ideals to which the society is dedicated
both on this campus and elsewhere
wherever its members have sojourned.
Phi Beta Kappa was founded as a fraternity
on December 5th, 1776
by a group of students at the venerable seat of learning,
the College of William and Mary at Williamsburg, Virginia.
Its range and influence gradually have extended.
At the present time, 290 colleges and universities
in the United States offer undergraduate courses
in arts and sciences that are sufficiently rigorous
and intellectually challenging
to shelter a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.
Since 1883, these have been bound together
in a national organization
now called the Phi Beta Kappa society.
Women were admitted to the University of Vermont in 1871,
four years later, the first of their numbers
were to be graduated.
The Alpha of Vermont takes special pride
in the resolution we pass on July 13th, 1875 saying,
"In the opinion of this chapter,
all of the graduates of this university
should be eligible to membership in the Phi Beta Kappa
without distinction of sex."
It was a unilateral action
and we awaited no concurrence from other chapters.
Two women Eliza Hamilton and Lida Mason
were recognized for their academic achievement
on that occasion and admitted to the fraternity.
Other chapters were eager to follow our precedent.
For some years, if not indeed decades now,
the number of women in the Alpha of Vermont
initiates each year has clearly exceeded that of men.
The Alpha of Vermont has the further distinction
of having elected and initiated
the first African-American to Phi Beta Kappa.
George Washington Henderson, top of his class in 1877.
The founders of Williamsburg declared that their society
should not be, "confined to any particular place,
men or description of men,"
but should be extended to
"the wise and virtuous of every degree."
The Alpha of Vermont is proud to have been instrumental
in two such extensions.
I will now turn it over to Professor Niles
who will now address the candidates
and administer the pledge, thank you.
- Thank you so much.
To you who have been elected to membership in course,
your election is in recognition
of your outstanding achievements in scholarly pursuits
and of your manifestation of high character
and of deep interest in the life of this university.
Before administering the pledge to our newest members,
I should like to quote from an address
delivered by Chief Justice, Charles Evan Hughes
to the Alpha of Rhode Island
on the occasion of its 100th anniversary in 1930.
"The particular interest of Phi Beta Kappa
is in liberal education.
Whatever debate there may be
as to its exact definition or its prerequisites,
it persists as an ideal.
Intensive critical study of educational aims and methods
has found nothing to take its place.
It means the development of careful training
of the capacity to appreciate
what has been done and thought,
the ability to make worthwhile appraisals of achievements,
doctrines, theories, proposals.
It is liberal because it emancipates,
it signifies freedom from the tyranny of ignorance
and from what is worse, the dominion of folly.
Learning is not its aim so much as intelligence
served by learning."
The candidates should now prepare themselves
to take the society's pledge.
With this statement,
respecting Phi Beta Kappa, its principles and purposes,.
I now ask you in words, first employed in 1779
and therefore venerable in the usages of our society
to affirm as follows.
That you will with all your possible efforts
endeavor to prove true just and deeply attached
to this our growing society.
And in addition to this ancient pledge, do you affirm
that in all your relations
you will adhere to the principles of the philosophy,
which its Founders accepted as the inspiration of life,
Friendship, Morality and Literature;
that you will bear full faith
and allegiance to this Chapter
and to the United Chapters of Phi Beta Kappa
of which it is a constituent part;
and that you will earnestly aid the society
in every appropriate way to attain its educational ideals
and its corporate purposes.
As these from time to time shall be set forth
by the national Phi Beta Kappa society.
If you so affirm, please say virtually, I do.
Were we meeting in person, this is the part of the ceremony
in which each student would be called to the stage
to receive their membership certificate,
honor cord and Phi Beta Kappa key.
This spring, students will be receiving their materials
in the mail directly from Hands and Hammer
the official supplier of Phi Beta Kappa accoutrements.
The Honor Cord is pink and light blue,
colors that were expensive to produce in the 1770s
therefore signifying the importance of membership.
Students would then sign their name and our chapter book
which has been in use
continually since the chapter's founding in 1848.
Many of you signed the book earlier this week.
And for those who could not, we will be contacting you
about opportunities to sign the chapter book
in-person at a future ceremony or by appointment.
So you can be a direct part
of this long and very special tradition.
In the meantime, we've collected your digital signatures
to make a collage to be inserted into the book.
Today, we will acknowledge each student
and share some information about them
that wouldn't usually be presented in the ceremony program.
Here to introduce the students is Professor Jack Bailey
of the Classics department
and former president of the Alpha of Vermont.
- Howdy everybody?
This is one of the highlights of my year.
Members of Phi Betta Kappa and guests,
I have the honor to introduce these persons
who having been elected to membership in course,
by the Alpha chapter of the state of Vermont,
now present themselves for initiation.
Maxwell B. Allen is a dual degree student
with majors in business administration and economics
from Yarmouth, Maine.
Gabriela Altounian is an Anthropology major
with minors in Art, Sociology, and Spanish
from Los Angeles, California.
Brianna Miriam Arnold is a Plant Biology major
with minors in Anthropology and Latin American
and Caribbean studies from Sharon, Massachusetts.
Julia Victoria Badics is a double major
in Anthropology and studio art from Acton, Massachusetts.
Summer Barnes is a Biological Science major
and a Wildlife Biology minor from Strafford, New Hampshire.
Julian Ash Barritt is an Anthropology major
with an individually designed second major
in Writing, Language and Literature
and a minor in Gender Sexuality
and Women's Studies from South Burlington, Vermont.
Teagan Marie Betori is a double major
in English and Environmental studies from Austin, Texas.
Cameron Bilardello is a communication sciences
and Disorders major and a Spanish minor with a certificate
in teaching English to speakers of other languages
from Naperville, Illinois.
Emma Catherine Blahut is an economics major
and a political science and Spanish minor
from Wayland, Massachusetts.
Aiden Blasi is a double major in English
and Psychological Science from Haverhill, Massachusetts.
Helen Katherine Bohn is a psychological sciences major
and an English minor from Calais, Vermont.
Maya Bostwick is an environmental studies major
with minors in art and Spanish from Bedford, Massachusetts.
Samantha Brady is a Biology major
with minors in American sign language
and Chemistry from Thomaston, Connecticut.
Benjamin Griffin Burns is a political science major
and an Anthropology minor from West Boylston, Massachusetts.
Elora Grace Buscher is a bioChemistry major
and a pharmacology minor from Grand Isle, Vermont.
Leilani R. Casper is an English major
and a film and television studies minor
from Northfield, Vermont.
Virginia Isabelle Dugan Churchill
is a double major in Chemistry and music
with a minor in French from Richmond, Vermont.
She is a previous winner of the Bogorad Award.
Brynn Connell is a double major in economics
and political science major from Westchester, Pennsylvania.
Claire Mabel Cook is a dual degree student
with majors in dance and human development
and family studies from Bradford, Vermont
Jill Turner Corrigan is a global studies major
and a human development and family studies minor
from Longmeadow, Massachusetts.
Alexander Robillard D'Amico is a biological science major
with minors in Chemistry and emergency medical services
from Charlotte, Vermont.
Quinn Erin DeFalco is a health and society
with an individually designed second major
in consciousness studies and a certificate
in integrative health care from Bristol, Vermont.
Darcy Eliot is a double major
in geography and global studies from Bethesda, Maryland.
Daniel Felde is a political science major
and a computer science minor from Norwich, Vermont.
Madeline Fuentes is an English major
with minors in critical race and ethnic studies
and food systems from Lexington, Virginia.
Erin Gallagher is an English major
with minors in reporting and documentary storytelling
and Spanish from Lincoln, Nebraska.
Adam Gellman is an environmental sciences major
from Jersey City, New Jersey.
Charlotte Santiago Graf is a political science major
and an environmental studies minor
from Newburyport, Massachusetts.
Amanda S. Grzywna is a dual degree student
with majors in secondary education and Spanish,
a minor in special education
and a certificate in teaching English
to speakers of other languages from Richmond, Vermont.
Pleun Haantjes is an economics major
and a global studies minor from Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
Julia C. Harrod is a Biology major
and a Chemistry minor from York, Maine.
Judy Hoang is a Chinese major
and an Asian studies minor from Wells River, Vermont.
Lee Hughes is a double major in French
and political science major
with an environmental studies minor
from Wyndham, New Hampshire.
Sasha Holland Hull is a double major
in Latin American and Caribbean studies and Spanish
with a minor in political science from Washington, DC.
Caitlin Hunt is a biochemistry major
from Wilmington, Vermont.
McKenzie Imhoff is a sociology major
with minors in critical race and ethnic studies
and Spanish from Verona, Wisconsin.
Julian Kafka is a psychological science major
with a minor in philosophy
and a certificate in physical activity promotion
in children and youth from Bethesda, Maryland.
Kathleen Ann Kelly is a political science major
and a Spanish minor from Lisbon, Connecticut.
Sophia Knappertz is a double major in Anthropology
and global studies major
with a German minor from Potomac, Maryland.
Anna Christine Kolosky is an English major
with minors in Biology and reporting
and documentary storytelling from Fishkill, New York.
Emma LaRose is a double major
in history and political science from Brooklyn, New York.
Katelyn Leeann Lipton is an environmental studies major
with a minor in art from Cornwall, New York.
Addie Luke-Currier is a double major
in Anthropology and political science
with a minor in Russian, from Randolph, Vermont.
Elizabeth Mackin is a dual degree student
with a major in environmental studies
earned in the Rubenstein school of environment
and Natural Resources
and a major in political science
earned in the college of arts and sciences
from Mansfield, Massachusetts.
Cai Lin McCann is a Biology major
with minors in molecular genetics and statistics
from Burlington, Vermont.
Marisa Anne Minadeo is a health and society major
with minors in nutrition and food sciences
and writing from Essex, Vermont.
Kira Marie Nikolaides, is a political science major
and a zoology minor from Mason, Ohio.
Zoey November is a dual degree student
with majors in dance and natural resources
and a minor in special education from Huntington, Vermont.
Will Omohundro is a political science major
with minors in global studies and Spanish
from Madison, Wisconsin.
Thea Pappas is a neuroscience major
from Bennington, Vermont.
Neel Patel is a biological science major
and a Chemistry minor from Williamstown, Massachusetts.
Jordan Rainville is a business administration major
and a French minor from Eastern Massachusetts.
Cory Raymond is a double major
in Biology and music from Richmond, Vermont.
Hannah Ritz is a psychological science major
and a music minor from Goshen, New York.
Rebecca Saunders is a double major
in political science and sociology
from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Yeliz Sayan is a studio art major
and a dance minor from Burlington, Vermont.
Anna Schonhorn is a political science major
with minors in Biology and English
from Hopkinton, Massachusetts.
James Sciarappa is a dual degree student
with majors in history and psychological science
from Wakefield, Massachusetts.
Michelle Rose Scully is an Anthropology major
and a French minor from Newport, Vermont.
William Seligmann is a biological science major
and a Spanish minor from Huntington, New York.
Rebecca Shames is a double major
in French and sociology with a history minor
from Medfield, Massachusetts.
Sarah Rose Sharpe is a double major
in global studies and Spanish
from Northampton, Massachusetts.
Willow Starkie Kreuder is an Anthropology major
with minors in art and communication sciences and disorders,
and a certificate in teaching English
to speakers of other languages from Bennington, Vermont.
Ryan Stewart is a Biology major
and a Chemistry minor from Kittery Point, Maine.
Camille Louise Torfs-Liebman
is a biological science major
and a Spanish minor from silver spring, Maryland.
Shayla Triantafillou is a dual degree student
with majors in environmental sciences
and geography from Acton, Massachusetts.
Luke Vidic is an English major
and a German minor from State College, Pennsylvania.
Kate Yates Williams is a nutrition and food sciences major
from Manchester, Vermont.
Ilana Claire Williams is a Biology major
and an economics minor from Potomac, Maryland.
Simone Catherine Withers is a sociology major
and a psychological science minor from Hampton, Maine.
She is also a previous winner of the Bogorad Award.
Jessica Wright is a biological science major
and a Chemistry minor from Ashland, Massachusetts.
Aaron James Wynmor is a psychological science major
with minors in business administration
and computer science minor from Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Lyucheng Zou is a dual degree student
with majors in Biology and neuroscience from Wuhan, China.
- Thank you, Jack
and congratulations to all of our students.
I always love seeing the photos and the quotes
and hearing more about our inductees.
Many of the deans of UVM's various colleges
usually attend our ceremonies
to shake hands with the students
after they've signed the chapter book.
Today we are happy to have several deans, associate deans
and faculty representatives with us.
I'll invite them now to give their congratulations.
First Dean David Gentlemen of the Honors college.
- Thank you, Meredith and good evening, everyone.
I am so glad to be here celebrating your induction
into the Alpha of Vermont's Phi Beta Kappa chapter.
Many of you are or have been at some point in your career
honors college students.
So congratulations to those of you
who have defended your thesis.
For those students who know me,
it is only appropriate at this time to tell you
that you were being welcomed into an esteemed organization
of which I am not a member.
Please don't tell the incoming class.
For this and for many other reasons,
I am so proud of all that each of you have accomplished,
especially given the extraordinary circumstances
of the last year.
Thank you to you and your families
for letting us be part of your academic journeys,
well done.
- Next Dean Scott Thomas
of the College of Education and Social Services.
- Thank you, good evening and congratulations.
As a Dean of the college of education and social services,
over the years, I have noticed being an educator
that one of the distinguishing characteristics
of Phi Beta Kappa members
is their level of learning and their curiosity.
And there are two other Phi Beta Kappa members
who have caught my imagination over time
that make tonight all the more special.
One was C. Wright Mills and C. Wright Mills
has a particular history with Phi Beta Kappa
that I'll let you discover on your own
but C. Wright Mills is the person
who really drove the idea of the sociological imagination
of living the life through the lens of others.
And he believed that neither the life of an individual
nor the history of a society
can be understood without understanding both.
And I leave you to think about that
because my experience with Phi Beta Kappa members is that
they live that and embrace that.
The other person who is a Phi Beta Kappa member
from your own chapter is John Dewey from 1879.
And John Dewey of course, is a key figure
in the philosophy of education
at least in the Western world.
And I leave you with my congratulations
but also John Dewey is reminder that
education is not preparation for life,
education is life itself.
Congratulations to you all,
it's just an honor to be working and studying with you.
- Thank you.
Next Associate Dean Katharine Shepherd
of the College of Education and Social Services
who will be taking over as interim Dean this summer.
- Thank you Dr. Niles and congratulations to everyone here.
It's such an honor to be invited
to become a member of the Phi Beta Kappa society,
the Alphas chapter of Vermont.
And it's been wonderful tonight to read your bios
and to see the extraordinary depth and breadth
of your experiences and all that you've done
while you've been at the University of Vermont.
We are so proud of you
and wish you all the best in the future, congratulations.
- Thank you.
Next Dean Nancy Matthews
of the Rubenstein School of Environment
and Natural Resources.
- Congratulations all of you.
It is such an honor and a privilege to hear about you
to see your accomplishments and to wish you well.
This morning at the Rubenstein school graduation ceremony,
I charge all of our students with the following.
As you begin your own migration
to your next stop over point and the one after that,
and as Rubenstein school students,
they got that these were birds that were fledging the nest.
I asked him to lead by example
and boldly step up and step out.
Be visible, be heard,
assert your skills and ensure a sustainable world.
The greatest challenge of our lives is still in our future
and is undeniably global change.
The world needs you and need you now.
As Phi Beta Kappa honorees, you have the skills,
you have the drive and you have the ambition
to make a change in the lives of the world.
Please step up and take this charge we need you.
Congratulations everybody.
- Thank you.
Next Dean Leslie Parise
of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
- Thank you Meredith.
Good evening, everyone and congratulations.
So I'd like to say a few words
about one of our inductees, Katherine Kate Williams.
Kate moved to Vermont from Troy, New York in 2017
before starting at UVM and has done so much while here.
She completed her honors thesis
and distinguished undergraduate research
with Dr. Ferryl Bertmann on feeding practices
in early childhood education centers
in Northwestern Vermont.
She's worked at the childcare center at the Burlington Y
and as a COVID screener
at the community health centers of Burlington.
She's volunteered at the UVM children's hospital
and now works in the campus COVID testing center.
She served on the executive board of Pi Beta Phi
and she's also a canoe leader in the UVM Outing Club.
To quote Kate, "I'm endlessly grateful to UVM, CALS
and the Burlington community
for the educational opportunities afforded to me
during my undergraduate experience."
(audio feedback loop)
- Sorry about that,
I think we're having a couple of technical difficulties.
I'm gonna turn it over next to Dean Noma Anderson
of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences.
Dean Anderson.
- Good evening everyone!
- It's so wonderful to be here for this wonderful occasion,
congratulations Cameron.
The rigorous requirements of the
College of Nursing and Health Sciences
(audio feedback loop)
results in very few students from our college...
(audio feedback loop)
- [Meredith] I apologize for that audio,
I think we're having a couple of technical difficulties
so I'm gonna go next to Professor Amy Thomas
of the Grossman School of Business
and hopefully we can come back to Dean Anderson in a minute.
(audio feedback loop)
- Thank you, Dr. Niles.
On behalf of Dean Sharma
and the Grossman School of Business,
it's my pleasure to congratulate Jordan Renville
and Maxwell Allen on this prestigious
and well-deserved honor.
We're very proud of both of you,
congratulations to you.
- Thank you Professor Thomas,
and next we have Dean Bill Falls
of the College of Arts and Sciences.
- It's my pleasure.
- Thank you, Professor Niles.
I'm so pleased to join the course of deans
and congratulate you on your outstanding achievements.
New members of Phi Beta Kappa,
there's so many things to celebrate about your induction
into Phi Beta Kappa this evening,
this wonderful ceremony which is so beautifully orchestrated
by our colleagues notes the history of the society
and of this story chapter.
As you reflect on all that you accomplished at UVM,
I really encourage you to learn more about Phi Beta Kappa
and to reflect on your achievements
in the context of what Phi Beta Kappa honors and celebrates.
You'll learn that to be a member of Phi Beta Kappa,
you must be of high moral character
and have shown exceptional academic achievement
in the arts and sciences.
I'd like to pick up on Provost Prelock's comments
and take a moment to consider what it means
to attain exceptional academic achievement
in the arts and sciences.
When we think of exceptional achievement,
we think naturally
of excellent performance in your coursework,
excellent grades.
That is certainly true, but I'd like you to think about
your exceptional academic achievement
in a slightly different way.
Your achievements are exceptional because you embraced
and vigorously pursued the liberal arts.
This choice should not be taken lightly.
Many of you pursued a course of study
in education business or the health professions,
others of you followed your interests
passions and curiosities and a major in the arts,
humanities, or sciences.
But all of you chose to dive deep,
deeper than you were required
into the richness of the liberal arts.
This choice contributes to your being honored today.
This choice has helped you become a culturally aware,
globally fluent, ethically minded critical thinker
who can communicate effectively
and work as a member of a team.
This choice has prepared you for success
as an engaged citizen and a lifelong learner.
So to me, this is also the achievement
that we celebrate this evening.
So on behalf of our excellent faculty and staff
in the college of arts and sciences, congratulations
- Thank you, Dean Falls.
And let's see if we can have Dean Noma Anderson
of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences again,
I know we had a few technical difficulties there.
Dean Anderson?
- Good evening everyone,
thank you so much for helping us
work through those technical difficulties.
Let me express our immense pride
to Cameron, congratulations.
I understand that the rigorous requirements
of the College of Nursing and Health Sciences
(audio feedback loop)
results in only a few students from our college
qualifying for Phi Beta Kappa.
Cameron, we're so proud of you!
You are one of the very few who has done this.
As a communication (inaudible)
such as I, such as Provost Prelock,
we give you a huge hug for your accomplishments.
Thank you.
(audio feedback loop)
- Thank you, Dean Anderson
and sorry for the continued technical difficulties.
Hopefully we've got it smooth from here on out.
So many thanks to the deans for being here with us today.
Thanks as well to the deans for providing the keys
and honor cords for this spring's inductees.
The Phi Beta Kappa key
is the society's distinctive badge of membership.
To explain the symbolism on the keys,
here is Professor Jamie Abaied, our Chapter Treasurer
and Associate Professor of Psychological Science.
- Thank you, Professor Niles.
The Phi Beta Kappa key of today,
bears the insignia of the metal
adopted on December 5th, 1776.
The three Greek letters of Phi Beta Kappa are the initials
of the Greek motto Philosophía Bíou Kybernétes,
which is interpreted to mean
"the love or quest of wisdom
is the guide or inspiration of life."
The three stars indicate the three fundamental principles
of the society; friendship, morality, literature.
And the index pointing to the stars
indicates the high aspirations of the members.
On the reverse, the letters S P are the initials
of the Latin words, Societas Philosophiae,
which are in harmony with the Greek motto on the obverse.
Above these initials,
the name and chapter of the wearer may be engraved.
The date, December 5th was engraved on the earliest metals
and indicates the time of the society's formal organization.
All wearers of the key thus belong
to one of the oldest college organizations in this country.
The oldest society formed
for the encouragement of scholarship
and the union of those engaged in scholarly pursuits.
In wearing this key, we should be mindful
of the noble sentiments which it represents,
of the distinction which has been attached to it
by the generations of eminent persons who have worn it
and of our individual obligation
to the great community of students and scholars
who are thus united by a common bond.
As the possessors of many of the treasures of the past,
it behooves us to make our contribution
to the present and to the future.
We owe a duty to our fellows, our community, our State,
and our Country to encourage the love of letters
and of sound scholarship and above all,
to keep alive the pure flame of truth.
Congratulations to all of you.
I'll now turn things back over to Professor Niles.
- To our initiates,
I now greet you as full members of Phi Beta Kappa
being well assured that it will be your ambition
to maintain and perpetuate the traditions and principles
of this ancient and honorable Sodality.
I have the further pleasure of introducing you
to your new associates here present
and of admitting you to the companionship of members
who for over 200 years of constant and consistent endeavor,
have made noble the name of Phi Beta Kappa.
Fellow members of Phi Beta Kappa and guests,
I am confident that I express your sentiments
when I repeat a paragraph
from the society's first ritual that of 1779.
"You all at this moment, experience in yourself
the heartfelt satisfaction which I do
at this valuable acquisition to our membership.
Let it be our joint care to extend the friendship
which has always been exercised by this society
to these new members.
That they may hereafter become veterans in its service.
Let us consider that they are no longer the strangers
who we have hitherto seen.
They're fellow members of Phi Beta Kappa
in which character I'm happy to introduce them to you."
Those whom we welcomed as candidates
are now dually enrolled as full members
of the Alpha chapter in the State of Vermont.
It will be their privilege henceforth to participate with us
with all Phi Beta Kappas host of members
in all appropriate activities of our society.
We recently confirmed your membership
with the national Phi Beta Kappa society
so you should now be able to participate
in their activities and networks as well.
There are several alumni associations throughout the country
and the national society has an active social media presence
and range of publications
all designed to help foster connections among members
and promote continued engagement with the liberal arts.
There remains one more item of ritual
in this 173rd annual meeting of our chapter.
Professor Phelps our Chapter Register
and Associate Professor of History
will read the names of our members
who have departed this life in the past year.
- Betsy Kipp Thurber, class of 1947.
Mildred Norrie Williams, class of 1948.
Stanley L. Burns, class of 1951.
Lorraine Bushey Johnson, class of 1951.
Josephine Norton Berger, class of 1953.
Hugh S. Levin, class of 1953.
Susan Flax Hein, class of 1960.
Marjorie Morton, class of 1968.
Joan Kistler Senecal, class of 1968.
Rachella Mac Bolton, class of 1970.
Kathryn Craig Hunter, class of 1970.
Edith Ferguson House, class of 1972.
And Jeffrey Armistead Lee, class of 1973.
- And now, by way of benediction two quotations.
First from Ralph Waldo Emerson,
an eminent member of Phi Beta Kappa
are verses that are as appropriate now
as when he penned them in that early 19th century.
"Nor knowest thou what argument Thy life
to thy neighbors' creed has lent.
All are needed by each one:
Nothing is good, nothing is fair or good alone."
And from Richard Feynman,
one of the most important physicist
and writers of the last century:
"We are at the very beginning of time for the human race.
It is not unreasonable that we grapple with problems
but there are tens of thousands of years in the future.
Our responsibility is to do what we can,
learn what we can, improve the solutions and pass them on."
Thank you all so much for joining us today.
My sincere congratulations to all of our new members
and thank you to all of our deans, faculty
and other members who were able to join us today.
These exercises are now at an end.
Congratulations and enjoy the rest of your week.