Handbook
PHI BETA DELTA
HONOR SOCIETY FOR INTERNATIONAL SCHOLARS
BETA NU CHAPTER
AT
THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM
Purpose and Goals
Phi Beta Delta, founded at California State University, Long Beach in 1986, was established as a national organization in 1987 with 38 chartered chapters invited to be founding chapters of the Society. It is the first national honor society dedicated to recognizing scholarly achievement in international education.
Beta Nu Chapter at the University of Alabama at Birmingham was founded in 1992.
The goals of the Society are:
To recognize the scholarly achievement of international students and scholars, U.S. students who have studied abroad and faculty and staff who are involved in international activities;
To serve as a vehicle for the development of academic-based international programming;
To provide a network on each campus of faculty, staff and students involved in international endeavors; and
To extend this network to thousands of members in chapters across the country and throughout the world.
Symbols of the Society:
Phi Love of knowledge (philomatheia)
Beta Valuing of human life (biotremmonia)
Delta Achieving excellence (diapheren)
The colors chosen for the honor society are red and gold. Red symbolizes the strength and diversity of humankind and gold is a symbol for the sun from which all people and cultures draw strength and life.
The crest of the Society was designed with a globe, a torch, the sun, a book, and a shield. The globe represents the international perspective of the Society’s members. The torch symbolizes the leadership and influence of the Society. The sun stands for the energy from which all cultures draw strength. The book symbolizes the coining and sharing of knowledge. The shield represents the preservation of academic freedom. The Society’s motto – Scientia Mutua Mundi (World’s Shared Knowledge) is inscribed at the base of the crest.
Contact Information
To Contact the Chapter
Telephone: (205) 934-3328
Fax: (205) 934-8664
Email: carola@uab.edu
To Contact the National Head Office
Fax: (705) 542-6622
Email: rreiff@arches.uga.edu
Current Officers of Beta Nu Chapter
President: H. Pennington Whiteside, Jr.
Vice President: Mona Eason
Student Vice President: S.M. Atique Rahman
Chapter Coordinator: Carol Argo
Membership Eligibility & Dues
Students:
Must be nominated by a UAB faculty member;
Must be junior or senior in undergraduate school or be enrolled in graduate or professional school;
Must have completed a minimum of one academic year at UAB;
Undergraduate students must have a 3.0 cumulative grade point average in the program of study
Graduate or professional school students must have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.5 in the program of study or, if enrolled in a program in which no grade point average is computed, be in the top 10 percent of students in the program of study at UAB
Faculty/Staff:
Must be nominated by two active members of Beta Nu Chapter of Phi Beta Delta
Must have demonstrated interest and involvement in international scholarly endeavors (i.e. teaching, research, service or program development)
Dues:
A membership initiation fee of $20.00 shall be paid by each candidate at the time of initiation into the Society. National annual dues are $15.00 per year. These fees/dues are determined by the National Executive Committee of Phi Beta Delta and shall be paid before initiation into the Society. Local annual dues are $5.00 for faculty/staff. Student members are exempt from local annual dues.
Links:
Phi Beta Delta Web Page: http://www.sa.sdsu.edu/isc/pbd.home