Phi Alpha Theta at St. Norbert College (Alpha-Lambda-Chi Chapter)

• History Senior David Thompson became the second SNC History major to present a paper at a Phi Alpha Theta Regional Conference (this one hosted by Oakland University in Rochester, MI) this past March. His paper, which was well received, addressed several key socio-political traits and policies of Tokugawa era Japan as illustrated in travel and life along the Tōkaidō road.

• Announcing new inductees for 2011: Chris Birke and Emily Peters.

• 2009 saw two new groups of students inducted into our chapter of Phi Alpha Theta. On Monday, May 4, 2009, they were Andrew Johnson, Joshua Jones, Jacob Kempowski, Nicole Naze, and Lindsey Wilcox. On December 11, 2009, they were Sasha Bong, Patricia Brehm, Katherine Burant, Alex Mattke, Zachary Pierson, Paul  Schweigl, David Thompson, and Andrea Wild.

• History Senior Patrick Lapacz became the first SNC History major to present a paper at a Phi Alpha Theta Regional Conference (this one hosted by St. Olaf College, February 27-28, 2009). His paper, which developed out of a research project in our Medieval History course, was entitled "The Real Patriarch Eraclius" and focused on the last Catholic Patriarch in crusader Jerusalem, c. AD 1180 to 1190/1191. As Patrick said in the intro to his paper, "Throughout the ages, Eraclius has been portrayed as a corrupt and uneducated church leader", but "a closer analysis of Eraclius' life and rule as patriarch of Jerusalem" reveals him as "a strong and energetic leader not as corrupt or unqualified." Patrick had a great experience at the conference and really enjoyed the entire event!

• Initiation of new members took place on Monday, April 21, 2008; the initiates were Patrick Lapacz, Laura Vaznelis, and Robert Vickman.

• New members were installed on Wednesday, May 2, 2007; they were Amelia Froelich, Daniel Dargenio, Evan Hucek, Karen Balfe, Katie Heitman, Peter Thoma, and Tyler Burke.

• New initiates in 2006 were Ashley Eckhardt, Alison Eisenreich, David Koltz, Elyse Krautkramer, Patrick Johnson, and Jennifer Lince.

• On March 15, 2005, the history discipline hosted the installation ceremony for our brand new St. Norbert chapter of Phi Alpha Theta. Dr. Michael Marsden, Dean of St. Norbert College, and Dr. Craig Lockard, the official rep of Phi Alpha Theta from the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, joined us for this special event. We also had several guests, family and friends of the honorees, in attendance. Three SNC History faculty members Robert Kramer, Wayne Patterson, and Victoria Tashjian) and nine student members (Philip Bandoch, Nicole Eggers, Laura Felmer, Samantha Harrison, Leslie Kroschel, Edward Ronsman, Timothy Walter, Ryan Wleklinski, and Aaron Yonke) were initiated into the society.  

How to join?

Here are the qualifications (all of them must be met):
1) an overall GPA of 3.75 in History courses,
2) at least 4 History courses completed at SNC,
3) an overall SNC GPA of 3.0,
4) junior or senior standing, and
5) a declared major in History.

There is also a one-time induction fee.

If you possess the above qualifications and are interested in applying for membership in Phi Alpha Theta, please contact Dr. Michael Lovano, Faculty Advisor, at 403-3464 or send an e-mail to michael.lovano@snc.edu.   

Why join?

Life-time membership in Phi Alpha Theta is an exciting intellectual, personal and professional opportunity for students and faculty at SNC.

Students can attend and participate in regional and national conferences, where they can present their own research, network with peers from other institutions, and develop confidence in themselves as scholars of history; host events for visiting members from off-campus; compete for undergraduate paper prizes and scholarships to fund graduate study in history; or publish original research projects through The Historian, Phi Alpha Theta's journal.

Faculty members can compete for awards for the publication of books and ground-breaking manuscripts, and like students, can submit original research to The Historian for publication.

National affiliation
Phi Alpha Theta

National history
Phi Alpha Theta was established at the University of Arkansas in 1921 by history professor Andrew Cleven, who wanted to combine social activities with intellectual pursuits in the field of history. Today, there are over 820 active chapters of Phi Alpha Theta nationwide and 275,000 members!