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Hendrix Announces 2023 Phi Beta Kappa Initiates

Phi Beta Kappa welcomes 24 from Hendrix College 


CONWAY, Ark. (May 9, 2023) – Twenty-four Hendrix College seniors have been elected to the Phi Beta Kappa Society’s Beta of Arkansas chapter at Hendrix.

Founded in 1776, Phi Beta Kappa is the nation’s oldest, largest, and most prestigious academic honor society, with more than half a million members worldwide. It has chapters at 293 of the finest colleges and universities in the United States, nearly 50 alumni associations, and more than half a million members worldwide. Noteworthy members include 17 U.S. Presidents, 42 U.S. Supreme Court Justices, and more than 150 Nobel Laureates. The mission of The Phi Beta Kappa Society is to champion education in the liberal arts and sciences, foster freedom of thought, and recognize academic excellence.

The 2023 Phi Beta Kappa inductees at Hendrix College are:

  • Cody Beckett of Bartlett, Tennessee
  • Sydney E. Boone of Olive Branch, Mississippi
  • Kyle Ashby Bounds of Greenbrier, Arkansas
  • Andrew Robert Brannon of Dallas, Texas
  • Charity Bratcher of Old Hickory, Tennessee
  • Kinsey Bryant of Benton, Arkansas
  • Emilie Cassar of Austin, Texas
  • Oscar Davis of Boulder, Colorado
  • Dinah Kathleen Everton of Hot Springs Village, Arkansas
  • John Henry Fowler of English, Indiana
  • Anna Claire Franklin of Oxford, Mississippi
  • Joshua Kee of Arlington, Tennessee
  • Maya Kreczmer of Royal Oak, Michigan
  • Kourtney Amber Lee of Cherry Valley, Arkansas
  • Kenzie Blair MacNicol of Little Rock, Arkansas
  • Monica Martinez of Brest, France
  • Cassandra McLaughlan of Fort Smith, Arkansas
  • Pooja Vipul Modi of Malvern, Arkansas
  • Reilly O’Neill of Little Rock, Arkansas
  • Linh My Phung of Little Rock, Arkansas
  • Maggie Ryan of San Antonio, Texas
  • Mayra Noemi Velázquez of Little Rock, Arkansas
  • Savanna Grace Watts of Houston, Arkansas
  • Ramy Ziad Yousef of Little Rock, Arkansas

In addition to the 24 new student members, Beta Chapter of Arkansas initiated W. Ellis Arnold III ’79, President of Hendrix College, as an Alumni member. Alumni and Honorary memberships are strictly limited by the Society, and this is the first Alumni Member initiation Beta Chapter has performed since its founding a quarter century ago. The extraordinary action was taken in recognition of President Arnold’s commitment to the liberal arts and sciences and the goals of Phi Beta Kappa.  

See more photos from the April 26 initiation ceremony.

About Hendrix College

A private liberal arts college in Conway, Arkansas, Hendrix College consistently earns recognition as one of the country’s leading liberal arts institutions, and is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges. Its academic quality and rigor, innovation, and value have established Hendrix as a fixture in numerous college guides, lists, and rankings. Founded in 1876, Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. To learn more, visitwww.hendrix.edu.