PBK News & Events

Chapter News & Events

Phi Beta Kappa's Key into Public Service Scholarship Application Now Available

The Society invites online applications for our Key into Public Service scholarship. In addition to awarding $5,000 undergraduate scholarships for successful applicants, this program connects promising liberal arts and sciences majors with pathways into local, state, and federal government service. Membership is not required, but students must attend a Phi Beta Kappa chapter institution and participate in a June 2022 conference that will provide training, mentoring, and resources.

Characteristics of ideal recipients include intellectual curiosity, breadth and depth in arts and sciences coursework, leadership propensity, and service to others. Interested students can learn more and apply online until January 23, 2022 at PBK.org/ServiceScholarsApp.

Provost Paula Myrick Short to host the Phi Beta Kappa Society Induction Ceremony for 2020 and 2021 Inductees

This fall, please join UH Provost and Chief Academic Officer Paula Myrick Short, Honors College Dean Bill Monroe, Phi Beta Kappa Society CEO Fred Lawrence, and the Phi Beta Kappa Resident Faculty and Staff as we welcome the 2020 and 2021 ΦBK inductees to the Mu chapter of Texas. Inductees who missed their in-person ceremonies prior to 2019 are also welcome to participate. The event will take place on November 17, 6 p.m., in the Rockwell Pavilion. Formal invitation to follow. Please email pbk@uh.edu for more information.

Phi Beta Kappa's Key into Public Service Scholarship Application Now Available

Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s most prestigious academic honor society, celebrates excellence in the liberal arts and sciences and champions freedom of thought. The Society invites online applications for the second year of its Key into Public Service Scholars program. This initiative will award $5,000 undergraduate scholarships and participation opportunities for networking and job training for up to 20 sophomore and junior liberal arts and sciences students interested in pursuing public service careers. Society membership is not required.

Characteristics of ideal recipients include intellectual curiosity, interdisciplinary breadth and depth of arts and sciences coursework, leadership propensity, and service to others.

Interested students should learn more and apply online by January 15, 2021 at PBK.org/ServiceScholarsApp. You can find more information on The Phi Beta Kappa Society and The Mu Chapter of Texas on our website or by emailing pbk@uh.edu.

Visiting Scholars Program

In October of 2019, the Honors College welcomed Aryanna Thompson, professor of English from George Washington University to speak as part of Phi Beta Kappa’s Visiting Scholar Program. Professor Thompson specializes in Renaissance drama and issues of race in/as performance. She is the author of Teaching Shakespeare with Purpose: A Student-Centered Approach; Passing Strange: Shakespeare, Race, and Contemporary America; and Performing Race and Torture on the Early Modern Stage. She serves on several editorial boards and has served as a trustee of the Shakespeare Association of America and on the board of directors for the Association of Marshall Scholars. Professor Thompson spoke on “Theorizing Revenge” at a Grand Challenges Forum and afterward hosted a reception and conversation about liberal arts education.

UH Honors College Hosts Top High Schoolers for Phi Beta Kappa Academy

On June 15, 2019, the Honors College hosted students from Houston Area high schools in conjunction with the Phi Beta Kappa Alumni Association of Greater Houston. This annual event serves to prepare promising students for the rigors of college and life through a series of mini-courses and workshops.

Creating a Culture of Phi Beta Kappa at the University of Houston

On April 23, 2019, the University of Houston Phi Beta Kappa (PBK) chapter inducted 85 new juniors and seniors representing 25 majors across the University—its largest cohort to date. Hosted by Provost Paula Myrick Short, the ceremony took place in the UH Hilton’s Shamrock room, and became the latest chapter in a blossoming tradition of celebrating liberal arts and sciences scholarship at UH. The evening’s featured speaker was Honors College faculty member and UH alum Michael Barnes.

CHAMP Wins Phi Beta Kappa Award

In Spring 2018, Phi Beta Kappa chose to honor the city of Houston and three local organizations for their work in building recognition of the arts and sciences in the community.

Honors College Founding Dean Ted Estess, 59 Undergraduates Become Members of Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society

On April 16 in the UH Hilton Shamrock Room, the University of Houston chapter of Phi Beta Kappa inducted its 2018 class—just the third in the newly installed chapter’s history. Founded in 1776, Phi Beta Kappa is the most prestigious honor society in the nation and the oldest that celebrates the liberal arts and sciences. It has over 500,000 living members who were elected by 286 chapters at leading colleges and universities across the country. And now, the Honors College Founding Dean Ted Estess and 59 outstanding UH undergraduates have joined their ranks.

Phi Beta Kappa, Nation's Most Prestigious Honor Society, Installs Chapter at University of Houston

In March of 2016, the University of Houston was officially granted a chapter from The Phi Beta Kappa Society, ending a decades long campaign and three-year application process.

Phi Beta Kappa, Nation’s Most Prestigious Honor Society, Establishes Chapter at UH

The Phi Beta Kappa Society (ΦBK), the nation’s oldest and most prestigious academic honor society, has established a chapter at the University of Houston (UH). UH is one of three institutions chartered to join the 283 existing Phi Beta Kappa chapters at America’s most esteemed colleges and universities. The invitation to host a chapter at UH follows a rigorous six-year evaluation process.