Each of the approximately 20,000 students who will become new members this year has a unique story, and each has achieved a level of excellence in the liberal arts and sciences that will stand them in good stead throughout their lives and careers in an ever-changing world.
We are living in a time saturated with rankings, but what we treasure most about a university experience cannot fully be captured by that which can be concretely measured.
This past summer, we convened the 46th ΦBK Triennial Council, the first ever to be entirely virtual. We gathered to celebrate the fundamental role that liberal arts and sciences education plays in our society and our democracy.
Three lessons in particular emerge from the crisis, the first two of which concern the critical importance of the liberal arts and sciences for our time.
We are reaching out to engage at the campus level as more institutions confront hard choices and as those choices threaten to undermine the possibilities for a robust arts and sciences experience.
Liberal education in particular cultivates the capacity to deal with complexity and diversity and not be threatened by differences of opinion.
The creativity and energy characteristic of the liberal arts enables us to continue our growth and our positive impact on the lives of our members and our nation.
The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the resilience, generosity, and courage of our ΦBK family.
Phi Beta Kappa has a unique voice to contribute to conversations that matter today.
Phi Beta Kappa addresses efforts to eliminate funding for the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Phi Beta Kappa has an important role to play in affirming the benefits of education, especially liberal arts education, for all of society.
Earning a key symbolizes a founding American ideal that many have questioned lately: opening the doors to opportunity based on merit.
