Talk:Phi Beta Kappa

message: Hello, Wikipedians. As you will see if you scroll up slightly, there is an elephant in the room: Wikipedia is taking a dues-receiving society at its word. I believe this is a clear instance of NOTPROMO, even if it is in good faith.
I have a few suggestions that I'll integrate if I don't receive feedback in a week's time.
# This article cites a New York Times article from 1996 that discusses criticism of the society. However, when we cite it, we continue to praise PBK: "As the first collegiate organization of its type to adopt a Greek-letter name, the Phi Beta Kappa is generally considered a forerunner of modern college fraternities as well as the model for later collegiate honorary societies."
# We should be writing: "In 1996, Emily Bernstein of The New York Times reported declining rates of Phi Beta Kappa membership acceptances at the University of Connecticut due to a decrease in social prestige. Citing an article by The Key Reporter, Bernstein claims that this is due in part to increasing numbers of 'first-generation college students, students who do not consult their parents on such matters, and students who have gone to public schools, all of whom are less likely to have heard of the society.'"
# Another article (http://ezproxy.hofstra.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/historical-newspapers/school-ferment-roils-phi-beta-kappa/docview/119052825/se-2?accountid=11449) from 1970 talks about this again. I suggest writing: "Earlier, in 1970, Robert Reinhold similarly reported for The New York Times that recipient students at the University of California at Berkeley expressed a mix of distaste and shame about the degree. Other members expressed a lack of satisfaction with the society for its significance." I am leaving out claims from Society officials here to not overuse it.
# A report from The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education (http://ezproxy.hofstra.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/news-views-phi-beta-kappa-hbcus-least-favored/docview/195551440/se-2?accountid=11449) from 1997 talks about a lack of chapter representation at HBCUs. I suggest adding: "A 1997 article from The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education critiqued the society for under-representation at historically black colleges and universities. The authors wrote that '[o]nly 3 of the nation's 100 black colleges and universities are members of Phi Beta Kappa' due to a rule that 10 faculty members at a university must be existing members, for which Black faculty would be socially disadvantaged due to a historic lack of admittance into relevant universities. Additionally, they created a list of 'Predominantly White But Second- or Third-Tier Colleges and Universities That Have Been Awarded Phi Beta Kappa Chapters,' which included Allegheny College and Millsaps College."
Full disclosure, I am a recent PBK inductee and a history student. I believe all three of these articles are fair game, though my writing might be too academic for Wikipedia. I've come back to edit now that I'll have free time as a graduate.
Happy trails. User:Bug2266 (talk) 00:04, 9 May 2024 (UTC)
replies: text: I've added these sections without deleting the sentence with the misattributed source listed in the first bullet point. I hope to add more later, and to generally flesh out the history. Ornov Ganguly (talk) 01:12, 16 May 2024 (UTC)
thread_title:  Criticism