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Phi Beta Kappa, the oldest Greek-letter American college fraternity, was founded in 1776 on the principles of social brotherhood and intellectual curiosity--but not drinking.

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Transcript

Lead: Phi Beta Kappa, the oldest Greek-letter American college fraternity, was founded in 1776 on the principles of social brotherhood and intellectual curiosity--but not drinking.

Intro: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts.

Content: Although student associations and guilds existed in European universities for hundreds of years, Greek-letter fraternities were founded by American students. The first of these, Phi Beta Kappa, was spearheaded by fifteen-year-old John Heath, a student at the College of William and Mary. He and other students held regular meetings for four years, with the anniversary meetings held at the Raleigh Tavern, the site of the first gathering.

In order to create an aura of exclusiveness and to protect its secrets, the group called itself Phi Beta Kappa, the initial letters for the Greek motto, “Philosophia Biou Kubernetes,” meaning “Philosophy, the Guide to Life.” All of the rituals we associate with fraternities--mottos, initiations, oaths, badges, handshakes and so forth--were established by Phi Beta Kappa . . . all, that is, except disorderly conduct and intoxication which were considered offensive and subjected the perpetrator to substantial fines.

In their meetings members discussed and debated revolutionary topics of the day as well as philosophy and literature. The group admitted about fifty members before they disbanded in 1781, with the approach of Cornwallis’ army. Founding members included future Supreme Court Justice Bushrod Washington and Chief Justice John Marshall.

The founders had granted charters to Harvard and Yale in 1779. The organization was thus preserved and it grew throughout the nineteenth century, evolving into an honorary society recognizing scholastic achievement and distinction. It pioneered the admission of African Americans and women into its chapters. Today there are nearly 300 active chapters, with one-half million members as diverse as Alexander Graham Bell, Helen Keller, James Michener, Benazir Bhutto, Jonas Salk, Stephen Sondheim, John Updike and Condoleezza Rice. Of the seventeen-member U.S. presidents, six were undergraduates when honored: John Quincy Adams, Chester Arthur, Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, George H.W. Bush, and Bill Clinton.

Research by Ann Johnson, at the University of Richmond, this is Dan Roberts.

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