Pi Delta Phi () is the National French Honor Society—La Société d'Honneur de Français—for undergraduate and graduate students at accredited public and private colleges and universities in the United States. Founded as a departmental honor society for French at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

in 1906, Pi Delta Phi is the oldest collegiate academic honor society for a modern foreign language in the United States. After many years as a local chapter, Pi Delta Phi reorganized and declared itself the National French Honor Society in 1920, and later chartered the ''Beta chapter'' at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

in 1925, and the ''Gamma chapter'' at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

, in 1926. The society expanded slowly during the next fifteen years but enjoyed renewed interest after World War II. In 1949 the

American Association of Teachers of French The American Association of Teachers of French (AATF) is a professional organisation for teachers of French in the United States founded in 1927. Teachers may be involved in primary, secondary, or university education. Additionally, retired and st ...

(AATF) endorsed the Society officially as the only collegiate French honor society in the United States. The society was admitted to membership in the

Association of College Honor Societies The Association of College Honor Societies (ACHS) is a predominantly American, voluntary association that serves a number of functions with respect to national collegiate and post-graduate honor societies. ACHS coordinates member organizations, faci ...

in 1967. It currently numbers more than 406 chapters established at representative public and private colleges and universities in almost every state, as well as chapters in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

and

Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. ...

. Pi Delta Phi and are trademarks registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Purpose

The purpose of the Society is: (1) to recognize outstanding scholarship in the French language and francophone literatures, (2) to increase the knowledge and appreciation of Americans for the cultural contributions of the French-speaking world, and (3) to stimulate and to encourage French and francophone cultural activities.

Organization

The Society's Executive Board, composed of elected regional Vice Presidents, is chaired by an elected President who appoints the Executive Director and Digital Media Editor. All Board positions are volunteer. The official publication of Pi Delta Phi is the ''Newsletter''. The Society awards annual scholarships for summer study in France and Québec to Regular undergraduate members of active chapters, and an annual graduate student research award for any study or research in a French-speaking country.

Membership

Regular members include undergraduate and graduate students at the sponsoring institution who are nominated in recognition of their academic achievement in French. Undergraduate or graduate candidates do not need to be French or French Studies majors or minors to be nominated for membership. The eligibility requirements for all undergraduate students are: completion of at least one course of upper division French (i.e. beyond the intermediate-level series of courses); 3.0 GPA in French, 3.0 GPA overall, AND rank in the top 35% of their class; and sophomore (second year) standing. Graduate students who are not already members of Pi Delta Phi are eligible for regular membership. The eligibility requirements for all graduate students are: completion of 2 graduate courses in French; and minimum 3.5 GPA in graduate coursework. Honorary members include: the French faculty of the sponsoring institution who are not already members of Pi Delta Phi; members of the faculty at large who are not already members of the Society; undergraduate and graduate students who do not meet the above requirements for regular membership; college or university alumni who did not become members while attending the sponsoring institution; and diplomats, community and business leaders, and others who have demonstrated support of French language, and/or of the cultures and literatures of the French-speaking world.

Chapters

A list of all of the chapters of Pi Delta Phi is available on the organization's website.Pi Delta Phi chapter list
accessed 31 Jan 2022.

References

External links