Thinking about status

Earlier today, Columbia College announced the names of 23 seniors it has inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa national honor society. A remaining 8% of students in the Class of 2017 will be announced in the spring. (Don’t give up hope!). Here are the new members:

Michael Abolafia
Paul Bloom
Christie Corn
Filipe de Avila Belbute Peres
Megan Felder
Jeffrey Gortmaker
Lauren Greenberg
Yubo Han
Zachary Heinemann
Emma Iaconetti
Weston Jackson
Mengzhou Jiang
Andrew Ling
Maria Mavrommatis
Kalina Misiolek
Dayalan Rajaratnam
Sarah Ricklan
Niklas Schwalb
Kate Seidel
Jacob Seidman
Carol Shou
Avinoam Stillman
Sophie Wilkowske

You can read the College’s statement below:

Columbia College has announced the names of 23 seniors who will be initiated into Phi Beta Kappa, the national honor society, on Friday, January 20. The students were chosen by a faculty selection committee of Phi Beta Kappa members based on the breadth, depth and rigor of their academic programs, as well as recommendations from faculty members who have worked with closely them.

Each year, 10 percent of the Columbia College graduating class is elected to membership in Phi Beta Kappa. Two percent (Junior Phi Beta Kappa) is elected in the fall and the remaining eight percent is elected in the spring.

Phi Beta Kappa was founded in 1777 for the pursuit of “friendship, morality, and literature.” It was the first student group to adopt  Greek letters, standing for the Greek words philosophies bios kubernetes, or “love of wisdom, the guide of life.” Today, this honor society celebrates and promotes excellence in the liberal arts and sciences. To be inducted into Phi Beta Kappa is one of the highest academic honors for undergraduate students and recognizes their exceptional scholarship.