History Department Inducts First Phi Alpha Theta Class: Students Lead Initiative to Bring Society to Conn

“You as students of human thought and action have expressed a desire to continue upon the high paths of history.…” With these words the first induction ceremony of the History Department’s new Phi Alpha Theta honor society begins. Starting this year, senior history majors with qualifying GPAs will have the opportunity to be inducted into the Phi Alpha Theta Honor Society. The addition of the honor society will greatly benefit those who become members, especially after graduation. Such benefits include networking opportunities as well as graduate scholarships and awards.

Senior Allison Blanning, a member of the History Department Student Advisory Board who helped form the society, is excited to use the society as a resource after graduation. “They have really good fellowships after you graduate, and a lot of really good connections. It’s being part of a history fraternity essentially. You get to meet a lot of people who are interested in the same things, and it’s really good for networking. You put it on your resume and then someone says ‘oh, me too!’”

The benefits of Phi Alpha Theta are already apparent here at Connecticut College. Professors Lisa Wilson, the chair of the history department, and Ann Marie Davis, also of the history department, are members of the society. Professor Wilson even won a book award in 2000 for her book Ye Heart of a Man: The Domestic Life of Men in Colonial New England.

Interestingly, the Connecticut College chapter of Phi Alpha Theta was formed mainly through the efforts of students. It was Blanning who conceived the idea of forming the society. She found out about the opportunities it offered while researching possible CELS internships last year. She then pitched the idea of forming a Connecticut College chapter of Phi Alpha Theta at a Student Advisory Board meeting. The board’s advisor, Professor Fred Paxton, asked the other faculty in the department what they thought of starting a chapter and was met with great enthusiasm.

The next step was submitting an application to the Phi Alpha Theta honor society itself. This turned out to be “a kind of laborious project” according to Paxton. Since Professor Paxton was the advisor to the Student Advisory Board, he was charged with gathering the necessary materials needed for the application, which he said included gathering signatures from various people at the college (history department chair, president of the College, etc.), course descriptions of history department classes and the curriculum vitae of the history department faculty. One of the most important moments in the process for Professor Paxton came when he met with the SAB to discuss what the entry requirements for the chapter would be. For Professor Paxton this was an opportunity to allow students to direct the process of the chapter’s formation. Professor Paxton will serve as the faculty advisor of the chapter once it is formed because of his intense involvement in the application process.

The induction ceremony is scheduled to take place at 5:30 on Oct. 10 in the Chu Room of Shain Library as part of Fall Weekend. At that time eight members of the Class of 2015, who were unable to be inducted in May because the chapter’s application had not been accepted at that time, will be inducted into the society as part of a ceremony that will bring the new chapter into existence. Professors Wilson, Davis and Paxton as well as President Katherine Bergeron will also be inducted as honorary charter members. A professor from Roger Williams University will be in attendance to validate that the ceremony took place in the proper fashion.
The ceremony itself is very strict: “They say unless you read [the script] word for word you are not constituted” says Professor Paxton showing an incredibly detailed seven page script, the main part of which calls for six people to read and represent the six “historical ages:” Prehistoric, Ancient, Medieval, Early Modern, Contemporary and Future. “It’s great in its bombastic rhetorical qualities,” says Professor Paxton. “It’s a little bit like Mozart’s The Magic Flute, where they have the initiation ceremony into the Masonic group.” When asked about whether he will be able to arrange for some of the finer stage directions to be executed properly, Professor Paxton replies that no, they will not be able to light candles in the Chu Room. •