Twenty-four juniors were recently elected to the Harvard College chapter of Phi Beta Kappa (PBK), Alpha Iota of Massachusetts.

The Alpha Iota of Massachusetts chapter of Phi Beta Kappa was first established under a charter in 1779. Shifting from a social and debating club in its early years to an undergraduate honor society in the 19th century, PBK is known as the oldest academic honor society in the country.

Under the national Phi Beta Kappa mission to foster and recognize excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, election to Alpha Iota of Massachusetts signifies that an undergraduate has demonstrated excellence, reach, originality, and rigor in his or her course of study. The honor society recognizes those whose course work exemplifies not only high achievement but also breadth of interest, depth of understanding, and intellectual honesty.

Twenty-four juniors are elected each spring, 48 seniors each fall, and a further number sufficient to bring the total membership to no more than 10 percent of the graduating class in the final election shortly before Commencement.

The juniors elected are:

Adams House: Spencer de Mars, Allan Hsiao, Robert Nishihara, Lee Seligman

Cabot House: Jessica Hwang, William Sun

Currier House: Sivakumar Sundaram

Dunster House: Ann Morgan, Alexa Zahl

Leverett House: Carl Daher, Kevin Stone

Lowell House: Jillian Jordan

Mather House: Adam Horn

Pforzheimer House: Camille Owens, William Rafey

Quincy House: Tony Feng, Julian Gewirtz, William Grogan, Andrew Kennard, Yacoub Kureh, Annemarie Ryu, Emily Unger, Benjamin Wilcox

Winthrop House: Irving Greenstein