The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi

Let the Love of Learning Rule Humanity

History

Eligibility

Why Join

Awards and Benefits

To recognize and promote academic excellence in all fields of higher education and engage the community of scholars in service to others

pkp md

About Phi Kappa Phi

Founded in 1897, The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi is the nation’s oldest and most selective all-discipline collegiate honor society.

Approximately 25,000 students, faculty, professional staff and alumni are initiated into the Society each year.

Phi Kappa Phi has chapters on more than 325 select colleges and universities in the United States, its territories and the Philippines.

Membership in Phi Kappa Phi is by invitation only to the top 7.5 percent of juniors and the top 10 percent of seniors and graduate students. Faculty, professional staff and alumni who achieve scholarly distinction may also be eligible.

Phi Kappa Phi awards more than $1 million each year to qualifying students and members through study abroad grants, graduate fellowships, funding for post-baccalaureate development, member and chapter awards, and grants for local, national and international literacy initiatives.

Motto : Let the love of learning rule humanity.

Mission : To recognize and promote academic excellence in all fields of higher education and engage the community of scholars in service to others.

Chapter 128 President's Message

Welcome to the website of the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi at Florida Atlantic University, Chapter 128!

We are delighted to inform you that our initiation ceremony this spring will be held virtually, hosted by national in May.

Please consider joining Phi Kappa Phi, the nation's oldest and most selective honor society recognizing and rewarding scholastic achievement in all academic disciplines. As a member of the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, you will be in the company of many distinguished members.

You will also be eligible for more than $1.3 million in national awards granted yearly for graduate fellowships, study abroad, and other competitive awards.

Dr. Eric H. Shaw has generously funded the Drs. Hersker, Shaw, Gosser Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi Scholarship Award. Thanks to this endowment, our Chapter 128 will be able to award scholarships to new initiates.

I would like to encourage you to support our other Endowed Scholarship Fund (Foundation Account: SAF120) when you make your yearly donation to FAU.

As the President of Chapter 128, I am delighted to welcome you to the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi at Florida Atlantic University.

Sincerely yours,

Dr. Mary Ann Gosser Esquilín Professor, Spanish and Comparative Literature

President, Phi Kappa Phi, Chapter 128

Phi Kappa Phi History

The Florida Atlantic University Chapter was installed as the 128th chapter of The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi on the 29th of May in 1971. The purpose of the chapter is to recognize, promote and reward scholastic excellence in all fields of academic endeavor.

The driving force in creating our chapter was Dr. Barry J. Hersker, Professor of Marketing, although Dr. Hersker always gave most of the credit to a student named Edward Krause who kept urging him to start a chapter at FAU. Signing the original charter were Professors: Barry J. Hersker, Carl W. Knox, James P. Latham, James B. Montgomery, John M. Scheidell, Robert Schwarz, Voncile M. Smith, Howard, N. Little, Kenneth R. Williams (FAU President), and Edward W. Krause (graduate student).
Drs. Eric H. Shaw, Nancy K. Poulson, Mary Ann Gosser, Ron Schultz, Mohammad Ilyas
pkp-historical-award-image

The chapter recognizes academic excellence through our initiations. The first initiation ceremony inducted some 25 students from a student body of about 4,000.

The chapter promotes academic excellence through our occasional speaker program and other special programs. As the only campus-wide honor society recognizing and promoting achievement in all academic disciplines, the Provost’s office, under the guidance of Dr. Jack Guistwhite, Director of Academic Affairs, adopted the chapter in 1980 and provided some administrative and financial support for programs for several years.

To reward academic excellence, the chapter provides scholarships. Since 1989, the chapter has offered up to $10,000 in scholarships each year to outstanding students regardless of academic discipline.

In 2005, under the direction of three past chapter presidents, Drs. William Stronge, Ronald R. Shultz and Eric H. Shaw, a $10,000 endowment fund to support chapter scholarships was created.

As part of an estate gift pledge from College of Business emeritus professor Eric Shaw '72, '73, Ph.D, Chapter 128 has received the "Hersker, Shaw, Gosser Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi Scholarship Award."

"My 50 years at Florida Atlantic University, first as an undergraduate student and now as emeritus professor, make me feel like I've grown up with the university," said Shaw. "I am forever grateful to FAU for providing me an excellent education, providing terrific mentors and talented colleagues to work with, exceptional students with bright eager minds to share knowledge, and offering me so many opportunities for personal and professional growth. It is a privilege and my great pleasure to give back by making a small contribution to this great university in its 'race to excellence.'"

For most of the last twenty years, the chapter has kept re-electing Dr. Mary Ann Gosser Esquilín as President (often despite her protests), because as Dr. Shaw stated: "No one strives for excellence, and achieves it, more than President Gosser." In 2021, our fiftieth anniversary, FAU Chapter 128 achieved the highest national recognition, the Phi Kappa Phi Circle of Excellence Platinum Award.

The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi Presidents of the Florida Atlantic University Chapter

YEAR(S) PRESIDENT
1971-1973 Barry J. Hersker
1974-1975 Gary A. Luing
1976-1977 James B. Montgomery
1978-1979 Walter R. Courtenay, Jr.
1980 Carl W. Knox
1981-1982 Douglas S. Gaitlin
1983 Roy B. Levow
1984-1985 Marilyn (Floyd) Federico
1986-1987 Sam Clark
1988-1989 Eric H. Shaw
1990-1991 Karl Ijams
1992-1993 Allen E. Smith
1994 Carla Coleman
1995-1996 Linda Wiler
1997-1998 Karl K. Stevens
1999-2000 Ronald R. Schultz
2001-2002 Barbara A. Ganson
2003 Mary Ann Gosser Esquilín
2004 William Stronge
2005-2014 Mary Ann Gosser Esquilín
2015-2016 Mohammad Ilyas
2017 Nancy Poulson
2018-2026 Mary Ann Gosser Esquilín

Why Join?

Current Officers

President

Mary Ann Gosser Esquilín

Professor

Dept. of Languages, Linguistics, & Comparative Literature

gosser@fau.edu 

President-elect

William Bosshardt

Professor

Dept. of Economics

wbosshar@fau.edu

Past President Nancy K. Poulson Professor Dept. of Languages, Linguistics, & Comparative Literature npoulson@fau.edu

Secretary

Mohammad Ilyas

Professor

College of Computer Science and Engineering

ilyas@fau.edu

Student Vice-Presidents

 Ty Craaybeek

Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters

  

Kayla Ahlness

Charles E. Schmidt College of Science

  

Stefan Melnick

College of Business

  

Ashley Rodriguez-Vallejo

College of Business

  

Cierra Wilson

Charles E. Schmidt College of Science

  

Scholarship Chair

Cheryl Jarvis Burke

Professor

Dept. of Marketing

jarvisc@fau.edu

Treasurer

Jennie Soberon

Director

OURI

jsoberon@fau.edu

Public Relations Larry Faerman Associate Vice President Student Affairs lfaerman@fau.edu
Communications Austen Canonica Alumnus

Marketing

 acanonic@fau.edu
Members-at-large

Catherine Trivigno

Senior Instructor

Wilkes Honors College

trivigno@fau.edu

 

Alexandru Pasarariu

 Eminent Scholars Office

College of Nursing

apasarariu2014@fau.edu

Lincoln Sloas

Associate Professor

School of Criminology & Criminal Justice

lsloas@fau.edu

These officers serve as the Executive Committee, with management responsibility for the FAU Chapter. All officers must be active members. Student members are eligible to serve as Vice President.

Scholarships

Chapter $1,000 scholarships are due March 20, 2026.

Complete the scholarship application form and email it to our Chapter's Scholarship Committee Chair, Dr. Cheryl Jarvis Burke.

* Please also include an unofficial FAU transcript and a one-page brief statement (see details on the form).

Chapter's Scholarships

Each year, Chapter 128 awards:

Honors Convocation Scholarship

This scholarship recognizes outstanding undergraduate academic excellence at FAU.

  • Value: $2,500 (one-time award)
  • Selection: Nominated by your college of enrollment and chosen by a university committee with Phi Kappa Phi representation.
  • Eligibility: Current FAU undergraduate students (awarded annually at the spring Honors Convocation).

Chapter Graduate Fellowship

This scholarship helps a new member transition into graduate studies at FAU.

  • Value: $1,000 (one-time award)
  • Selection: Decided by the Chapter's Scholarship Committee.
  • Eligibility: New spring initiates who graduate from FAU with a bachelor's degree and enroll full-time in an FAU master's or doctoral program.
  • To access application form
  • Deadline: March 19, 2027

National Fellowships

Phi Kappa Phi Fellowship

Phi Kappa Phi Dissertation Fellowship

Phi Kappa Phi Graduate Research Grant

Phi Kappa Phi Love of Learning Awards

Pioneer Awards

Study Abroad Grants

Phi Kappa Phi Fellowship

The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi currently awards 40 Fellowships of $8,500 each, six at $15,000 each, and two at $35,000 each to members entering the first year of graduate or professional study. 

Chapter 128 nominates one outstanding student member to represent Florida Atlantic in the national Phi Kappa Phi fellowship competition each year.

Forms must be downloaded directly from the National Phi Kappa Phi Website.

FAU Internal Review Process

The sole FAU nominee is chosen by the Chapter’s Scholarship Committee. To be considered for the university's nomination, you must submit your materials for our initial rounds of local deliberations.

  • FAU Chapter Deadline: Friday, March 19, 2027 (by the end of the business day).
  • Submission Instructions: Email all required national application documents (except your official transcript) directly to the Chair of the Scholarship Committee, Dr. Cheryl Burke Jarvis, at jarvisc@fau.edu .
  • Letters of Recommendation: Please instruct your two recommenders to email their letters directly to Dr. Jarvis.

Membership Information

Eligibility requirements are as follows:

Membership in The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi is earned, and admission is by invitation only. An invitation to join requires nomination by our chapter.

Undergraduate Students:

  1. Completed at least 24 semester-hours at FAU.
  2. a.  Classification as a junior and scholastic ranking in the top 7.5% of the junior class for the college of enrollment. Juniors must also have at least 72 cumulative earned hours (FAU or Transfer hours).

    - or -

    b.  Classification as a senior and scholastic ranking in the top 10% of the senior class for the college of enrollment. Seniors must also have at least 90 cumulative earned hours (FAU or Transfer hours).


Graduate and Professional Students:

  1. A candidate for an advanced degree at the master’s or doctoral levels.
  2. Completed at least 18 semester-hours at FAU.
  3. Scholastic ranking in the top 10% of all graduate students in the college of enrollment.


Faculty, Professional Staff, and Alumni:

  1. Scholastic records and/or outstanding achievements rendering them worthy of membership.

Membership Procedures

Students
Qualified students receive an email early in the Spring semester inviting them to membership. (Individuals who believe they meet eligibility requirements, but who did not receive a letter of invitation, should contact the Chapter President).


Faculty and Staff
Limited numbers of qualified faculty and staff are invited to membership each year, based upon nominations by members. Invitationa are issued early in the Spring semester.
New members will be initiated at the Spring Phi Kappa Phi virtual ceremony held in May. Details are provided in the letter of invitation to membership.

Dues and Fees

Initiation Fee
Total initiation fee for 2026 is $100. The fee pays for your pin, a certificate, and one year of national and local dues.

Dues
National dues are $77/year with multi-year discounts available. Yearly dues for Chapter 128 are $15/year, most of which goes to support scholarships.

Contact Us

FAU Chapter 128 of Phi Kappa Phi

Email: phikappaphi@fau.edu

Initiation FAQs

The virtual ceremony will be hosted by National on Sunday, 31 May 2026 at 5pm ET. The deadline to RSVP for the ceremony is Sunday, 17 May 2026.

About 1 1/2 hours

All materials will be mailed to you directly by National to the address you provided when you registered. They will assess an $8 mailing fee.

All applicants will receive an email.

You have to meet all eligibility criteria. If you believe you qualify, please send us an email.

University Advising Services

Mon. - Fri. 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. | Virtually: Mon. - Fri. 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Contact Us

location_on
Student Support Services (SU-80), Room 201
777 Glades Road
Boca Raton, FL 33431
call (561) 297-3064
mail advisingservices@fau.edu