PDK International (also known as PDK or Phi Delta Kappa International) is an international

professional organization A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) is a group that usually seeks to advocacy, further a particular profession, the interests of individuals and organisations engaged in ...

for educators. It was founded on January 24, 1906, at Indiana University. The fraternity administers the collegiate

honor society In the United States, an honor society is an organization that recognizes individuals who rank above a set standard in various domains such as academics, leadership, and other personal achievements, not all of which are based on ranking systems. ...

Pi Lambda Theta and the

career and technical student organization Career and technical student organizations (CTSOs) are vocational organizations primarily based in high schools, colleges and career technology centers. Often, on the state level, they are integrated into State education agency, departments of edu ...

Educators Rising.

History

Phi Delta Kappa formed from the merger of three organizations—Pi Kappa Mu, Phi Delta Kappa, and Nu Rho Beta.Shepard, Francis W., ed. (1927). ''Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities'' (11th ed.). Menasha, Wisconsin: George Banta Publishing Company. pp. 356–357. – via Google Books. Pi Kappa Mu was established at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...

on January 24, 1906, and added chapters at Stanford University and the University of Iowa by 1910.Robson, John, ed. (1963). ''Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities'' (17th ed.). Menasha, Wisconsin: The Collegiate Press, George Banta Company, Inc. pp. 506-508. Phi Delta Kappa was formed on March 13, 1908, at Columbia University and formed a second chapter at the University of Chicago in 1909. Nu Rho Beta was created at the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...

on February 23, 1909. Representatives of Pi Kappa Mu, Phi Delta Kappa, and Nu Rho Beta met in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

on March 1, 1910, and agreed to a merger as Phi Delta Kappa. The new organization was a professional fraternity for the field of education. Its members were classroom teachers, college and university professors, and administrators. Membership was limited to white males at the August 1915 convention. Phi Delta Kappa joined the Professional Interfraternity Conference in 1928. In 1940, ''Sigma chapter'' at

Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...

initiated one Chinese and one Black member and was suspended at the December 1941 convention with charter revocation to occur in May 1942 if the chapter did not remove membership for the two non-whites. A demand for a popular vote of the entire membership led to a membership poll being sent to all members and eventually the deletion of the "white clause" by the membership. On June 2, 1942, an announcement was made to all of the chapters of the removal of the race restriction. By 1962, the fraternity had 135 active campus chapters, 85 community-based chapters, and a total of 93,000 members. Programs administered by the fraternity include the collegiate

Pi Lambda Theta and the

Educators Rising. PDK International's national headquarters is located in Arlington, Virginia.

Symbols

Phi Delta Kappa's coat of arms includes three keystones for the founding institutions; three stars representing child, home, and school; a burning lamb and book representing research; a flaming torch symbolizing service; and an upraised hand with a sword to symbolize leadership. Acanthus leaves surround the shield and represent learning. Phi Delta Kappa's badge is a monogram of the Greek letters on top. The fraternity also has a service key. Starting in 1915, it has published ''Phi Delta Kappan,'' a professional journal for education.

Governance

Phi Delta Kappa is governed by an International Board, who are elected by the fraternity's members. The fraternity abides by the constitution and bylaws of PDK International. The chief executive of PDK International is James F. Lane.

Chapters

As of January 2024, Phi Delta Kappa International has 124 chapters.

Notable members

* Edna P. Amidon, chief of the Home Economics Education Service of the

United States Office of Education The Office of Education, at times known as the Department of Education and the Bureau of Education, was a small unit in the Federal Government of the United States within the U.S. Department of the Interior from 1867 to 1972. It is now separa ...

* Hattie Bessent, psychiatric nurse, professor at

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

, and graduate dean at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

* Esther Buckley, member of the

United States Commission on Civil Rights The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (CCR) is a bipartisan, independent commission of the United States federal government, created by the Civil Rights Act of 1957 during the Eisenhower administration, that is charged with the responsibility f ...

* John Napier Burnett (''Epsilon Delta''), pioneer of education in

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

* William C. Chasey, founder and president of the Foundation for Corporate Social Responsibility (FCSR) in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, Poland * Kenneth Creasy,

Ohio House of Representatives The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate. The House of Representatives first met in ...

* Kay Cornelius, novelist * Barbara Curbow, professor and chair of the Department of Behavioral and Community Health at the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

* Fenwick W. English, chair of education at the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...

at Chapel Hill * Sidney Clarence Garrison, second president of

Peabody College Vanderbilt Peabody College of Education and Human Development (also known as Vanderbilt Peabody College, Peabody College, or simply Peabody) is the education school of Vanderbilt University, a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee ...

* Victor Gaston,

Alabama House of Representatives The Alabama House of Representatives is the lower house of the Alabama Legislature, the state legislature (United States), state legislature of state of Alabama. The House is composed of 105 members representing an equal number of districts, with ...

Gene V. Glass Gene V Glass (born June 19, 1940) is an American statistician and researcher working in educational psychology and the social sciences. According to the science writer Morton Hunt, he coined the term "meta-analysis" and illustrated its first us ...

statistician A statistician is a person who works with Theory, theoretical or applied statistics. The profession exists in both the private sector, private and public sectors. It is common to combine statistical knowledge with expertise in other subjects, a ...

and researcher working in

educational psychology Educational psychology is the branch of psychology concerned with the scientific study of human learning. The study of learning processes, from both cognitive psychology, cognitive and behavioral psychology, behavioral perspectives, allows researc ...

and the

social sciences Social science (often rendered in the plural as the social sciences) is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of society, societies and the Social relation, relationships among members within those societies. The term was former ...

* Frank Pierrepoint Graves, 3rd Commissioner of Education of the State of New York * Syed Hassan, educationist, humanist, and the founder of INSAN School * Edd Houck,

Virginia Senate The Senate of Virginia is the upper house of the Virginia General Assembly. The Senate is composed of 40 senators representing an equal number of single-member constituent districts. The Senate is presided over by the lieutenant governor of Virg ...

* James Hampton Kirkland, second

chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

* H. S. S. Lawrence, Indian

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

alist * Cloyd H. Marvin,

president of the George Washington University The president of the George Washington University is the chief executive officer of the George Washington University, appointed by the GW Board of Trustees and charged "to establish the university's vision, oversee its teaching and research missio ...

* Neil C. Macdonald,

North Dakota Superintendent of Public Instruction The North Dakota superintendent of public instruction oversees the operations of the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction. The superintendent enforces state and federal statutes and regulations regarding public schools and related program ...

* William E. McVey,

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

and professor of education at

De Paul University DePaul University is a private Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th-century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul. In 1998, it became ...

* Pornchai Mongkhonvanit (Thailand), president of Siam University and the

International Association of University Presidents The International Association of University Presidents (IAUP) is an association of university chief executives from higher education institutions around the world. The IAUP was founded in 1964 in Oxford. Membership is limited to those individuals ...

* Alfred C. Nelson, academic who taught at the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1864, it has an enrollment of approximately 5,700 undergraduate students and 7,200 graduate students. It is classified among "R1: D ...

and also served as its interim chancellor * Blake T. Newton,

* Robert Morris Ogden, dean of the

Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences The Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences (CAS or A&S) is an academic college at Cornell University. It has been part of the university since its founding in 1865, although its name has changed over time. It is the largest of Cornell Univ ...

Archie Palmer Archie MacInnes Palmer (1896-1985) was an American educator and academic administrator who served as 8th president of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga from 1938 to 1942. Biography Palmer was born May 9, 1896, in Hoboken, New Jersey, ...

, 8th president of the

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UT Chattanooga, UTC, or Chattanooga) is a public university in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States. It was founded in 1886 and is part of the University of Tennessee System. History UTC was founde ...

James Melvin Rhodes James Melvin Rhodes (June 14, 1916 – April 29, 1976) was an American educational scientist, assistant professor of education and creativity researcher who was the originator of the pioneering concept of the 4 "P"s of creativity. Biography Mel ...

(1950), educational scientist and assistant professor of education * Edward Rogalski, educational scientist, assistant professor of education * Jack McBride Ryder (''Michigan State'') second president of Saginaw Valley State College *

W. Otto Miessner William Otto Miessner (May 26, 1880 - May 27, 1967) was an American composer and music educator. Most of his life was spent in the midwest, particularly Indiana and Wisconsin. Life and career Born in Huntingburg, Indiana, Miessner was the son of ...

, educational scientist, assistant professor of education * Barefoot Sanders, Senior Judge of the

United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas The United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas (in case citations, N.D. Tex.) is a United States district court. Its first judge, Andrew Phelps McCormick, was appointed to the court on April 10, 1879. The court convenes in ...

* Marvin Scott, college professor and politician *

Bo Shepard George Edward "Bo" Shepard (September 18, 1904 – May 8, 1983) was an American basketball coach. he served as the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team from 1931 to 1935. Early life and family Shepard was the sevent ...

, head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team from 1931 to 1935 * E. Mark Stern,

humanistic Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential, and agency of human beings, whom it considers the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humanism" ha ...

/ existential psychologist * Brice Taylor (''University of Southern California'') college football coach * Oscar Tingelstad (University of Chicago), president of

Pacific Lutheran University Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) is a Private university, private Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Lutheran university in Parkland, Washington. It was founded by Norwegian Lutheran immigrants in 1890. PLU is sponsored by the 580 congreg ...

* Pete Turnham,

* Robert G. Voight, professor at

Oral Roberts University Oral Roberts University (ORU) is a Private university, private Evangelicalism, evangelical university in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Founded in 1963, the university is named after its founder, Charismatic Christianity, Charismatic Christian preacher Oral ...

* Lawrence Walkup, professor at Oral Roberts University * William Arthur Ward, writer and college professor * Walter Washington, college professor and first African-American to receive a doctorate in Mississippi. * Wilfred D. Webb,

Michigan House of Representatives The Michigan House of Representatives is the lower house of the Michigan Legislature. There are 110 members, each of whom is elected from constituencies having approximately 77,000 to 91,000 residents, based on population figures from the 2020 ...

* Albert Pau Weiss,

behavioral Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English) is the range of actions of individuals, organisms, systems or artificial entities in some environment. These systems can include other systems or organisms as well as the inanimate p ...

psychologist A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...

theorist A theory is a systematic and rational form of abstract thinking about a phenomenon, or the conclusions derived from such thinking. It involves contemplative and logical reasoning, often supported by processes such as observation, experimentation, ...

scientist A scientist is a person who Scientific method, researches to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engag ...

, and experimentalist * Rafael Cartagena Ródriguez, educator and former

Secretary of Education of Puerto Rico The secretary of education of Puerto Rico is responsible for the development and management of all educational matters in the government of Puerto Rico and heads the Puerto Rico Department of Education, Department of Education. There have bee ...

References

External links

{{Authority control Educational organizations based in the United States 1906 establishments in Indiana Student organizations established in 1906 Former members of Professional Fraternity Association