| Phi Alpha Theta
National Honor Society in History Faculty Advisor
Purpose
History of the Organization
Major Activities
Eligibility
Faculty Advisor:
Ms. Jane Edwards, HU317, 410-617-2018, E-mail: JEdwards@loyola.edu [Return to the top of the page] Purpose:
To recognize and encourage excellence in the study of history. [Return to the top of the page] History of the Organization:
The following is excerpted from the This is Phi Alpha Theta pamphlet (Phi Alpha Theta publication; revised, 1996).
The National Honor Society in History, Phi Alpha Theta, was established at the University of Arkansas on March 17, 1921, by N. Andrew N. Cleven. Dr. Cleven became Assistant Professor at the University of Kansas in 1919. He would frequently chaperone the social activities of campus fraternities and sororities, organizations for which he previously had little regard. These gatherings would inspire what he termed the "Phi Alpha Theta idea."
The possibility of "diffusing information through socialized avenues," he wrote later, "was due to the kindly cooperation of my students in Arkansas." He came to regard fraternities as "an essential spirit of the age . . . searchers all for Truth in History." Such societies were crucial because "the human side of scholarship needs to be nurtured and thought made articulate." Despite the national proliferation of social and professional fraternities during the period, he discovered there were no societies in History, a deficiency he was determined to remedy. In his mind he envisioned a secret fraternity, open to women as well as men, which would embrace the "entire History of Mankind." By chance, on the wall of his classroom hung a painting depicting ancient Assyria and featuring a six-pointed Star of Divinity. The star would become the central symbol for the history fraternity. On March 14, 1921, Dr. Creven presided over a meeting in his classroom with a group of History students. Those present voted to create the University Historical Society. Officers were elected and Constitutional, Program, and Membership committees were appointed. Even though Dr. Creven regarded this meeting as the anniversary date of the founding of Phi Alpha Theta, it was not until a month later that the name Phi Alpha Theta was formally adopted.
Since its inauguration, Phi Alpha Theta has grown to more than seven hundred chapters in fifty states. It has the distinction of having more chapters than any other accredited honor society, holding one of the earliest memberships in the Association of College Honor Societies. The total number of initiates since its inception is more than 240,000.
The Phi Alpha Theta National Honor Society in History is comprised of chapters from properly accredited colleges and universities. All students in these institutions who have completed the required number of history courses and are maintaining high standards in all their college or university studies are eligible for membership.
We are a professional society whose mission is to promote the study of history through the encouragement of research, good teaching, publication, and the exchange of learning and ideas among historians. We seek to bring students, teachers, and writers of history together for intellectual and social exchanges, which promote and assist historical research and publication by our members in a variety of ways.
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Major Activities: Publication of The Historian, a quarterly journal of history, and The Newsletter issued three times yearly; establishment of nine annual scholarships covering student members entering graduate school and those taking advanced graduate work; sponsorship of an annual contest for papers on historical subjects by awarding six annual prizes covering both undergraduate and graduate student levels; annual grants of two awards of $500 each for the best book in history published by a member, one award for the first such book published and the second award for a subsequent book published by a members; six annual awards for the best chapter in each category of college enrollment; an annual publication of the best manuscript in the field of history submitted by a member during the current year; annual regional meetings; two annual grants, each of $1,000, one grant for advanced work by a faculty advisor and one grant for advanced work by a graduate student.
[Return to the top of the page] Eligibility: Membership is not restricted to history majors or minors. However, applicants must meet the national requirements for membership: a minimum of twelve credit hours in history (AP credit and HS 101 ARE applicable); a QPA of at least 3.1 in all history courses; a QPA of at least 3.0 in two-thirds of all remaining courses (meaning you can subtract 1/3 of the lowest grades in all non-history courses).
If a student believes he/she meets these requirements, he/she should obtain a copy of his/her TRANSCRIPT from the Records Office and submit it, along with his/her local phone number, to the Phi Alpha Theta faculty advisor. The moderator verifies that each student has met the criteria and notifies the students regarding their status.
If a student wishes to be inducted into the society, he/she must: 1) go to the faculty advisor's office and fill out two registration cards; write one check for $30 to P.A.T. (for national dues) and one check to Loyola College for $7 (for local dues). There are one time only dues. These tasks must be completed before the students can become members.
The Induction Ceremony is usually conducted once in the fall and once in the spring semester. However, if the number of fall applicants is small, the ceremony will be held just once during the academic year (during the spring semester).
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