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Hyeon-Seok Tom Yu, class salutatorian, gave the student address at the Phi Beta Kappa induction ceremony at the Mahaney Center for the Arts.

MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – In a commencement-weekend ceremony at the Mahaney Center for the Arts, 57 Middlebury College students were elected to Phi Beta Kappa, the oldest honor society for the liberal arts and sciences in the United States. The new members join 10 classmates who were inducted last fall after three years at Middlebury.

“It is a privilege to identify and recognize the students who have most excelled here, and we hope that you in turn will take this recognition seriously” said Jane Chaplin, president of Middlebury’s Phi Beta Kappa chapter and the James I. Armstrong Professor of Classics. “The society which you are joining no longer sponsors the kind of philosophical activities for which it was created, but it continues to promote the place of learning in the world. In electing you, we are encouraging and expecting you to be learners and advocates of learning whether or not you ever again find yourself in a formal academic setting.”

Chaplin described some of rich history and traditions surrounding Phi Beta Kappa, which began at the College of William and Mary in 1776. One of the traditional symbols most often identified with Phi Beta Kappa is the key, which the society developed in its early days. Middlebury owns one of the oldest Phi Beta Kappa keys still in existence, Chaplin noted, holding up a key that belonged to Middlebury’s first president, Jeremiah Atwater.

Graduating senior Hyeon-Seok Tom Yu, who was inducted last fall after three years at Middlebury, gave the student address. Yu told of his personal college journey and redefining his ideas about college success, from a focus on grade point average and job security to a broader perspective on the reasons for a liberal education

“I think the 3-digit number [GPA] can be much more meaningful with an honest identification of its purpose,” said Yu. “For me, thinking about what PBK stands for – learning and friendship, in particular – was the starting point.”

Two students were presented the Phi Beta Kappa Prize, which is bestowed “To the graduating senior(s) whose scholarly or artistic accomplishment and breadth, and contribution to the intellectual life of the community, best exemplify the Society’s regard for intellectual excellence.” The two students were Katherine Dold Bauman and Benjamin Marshall Clark.

Susan Baldridge, vice president of Middlebury’s Phi Beta Kappa chapter and provost, led the group in the traditional oath of induction, then introduced the new members to the audience of family, friends, and faculty members.

Each year the Middlebury chapter elects up to ten percent of the senior class to membership: Two percent of the class is elected in August, on the basis of six semesters’ work, and up to an additional eight percent is elected in May, on the basis of work completed over eight semesters.

Students elected after three years at Middlebury:

Katherine Elizabeth Baughman

Elise Katherine Cabral

Benjamin Marshall Clark

Aneleisa Y. Gladding-Hinton

Katherine Ramsey Hamilton

Benjamin Dunning Harris

Andrew Michael Kreuzman

John Loebs

Brian A. Rowett

Hyeon-Seok Tom Yu

Students elected after four years at Middlebury:

Olivia Julika Aborn

Daniel Easton Anderson

Mark Jeffrey Balderston

Katherine Dold Bauman

Eric M. Benoit

Elisa A. Berger

Joshua Berlowitz

Valerie C. Braddick

Timothy Elias Crocker

John Erik DesBois

John James Desmarais

Clare Katherine Donohue-Meyer

Rachel Gabrielle Frank

Shelby Elise Friedman

Dylan Christopher Gilbert

Rebecca Mary Bowen Goodman

Andrew Thomas Goulet

Ilana Mollie Gratch

Margaret Olivia Hadley

Lisa Beth Han

Helena Natalia Hlavaty

Peter Frederic James

Sarah Elizabeth James

Zitong Bruce Jia

John Martin Karabinos

Adam P. Kelley

Peter Kiley-Bergen

Youngji Camille Kim

Kyle Garwin Kysela

Winson K. Law

Mary Minhua Magnuson

Nitya Devi Mankad

Emma Louise McDonald

Austin C. Nielsen-Reagan

Hanna Rose Uakea Nowicki

Madison Lyn Orcutt

Elizabeth Atwood Oyler

Kristina Pallová

Gioia Linnea Pappalardo

Jana Margaret Kalustian Parsons

Dylan Wilson Peters

Daniel Robert Pierce

Jena Haley Ritchey

Michael Brian Russo

Ali Azzam Salem

Sadie Mary Darden Shackelford

AnnaClare C. Smith

Matthew Thomas Stanley

Sarah I. Steinberg

Alana Mikaela Taylor

Annalise Taylor

Thilan Mackenzie Tudor

Rebecca Anne Van Dercook

Fan Wu

Zhiwen Yao

Yashu Zhang

Parker Ellis Ziegler

For More Information

Middlebury Phi Beta Kappa chapter