Psi Chi
Psi Chi is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies and is an affiliate of the American Psychological Association (APA) and the Association for Psychological Science (APS).
Founding
Psi Chi was founded by Frederick Howell Lewis and Edwin B. Newman, psychology students at the University of Kansas. Lewis and Newman first thought of a national organization for psychology students while working on research late one night in 1927. Over the next two years, they wrote to psychology faculty and students at various universities and formed discussion groups with other students. Psi Chi's first official meeting was on September 4, 1929, at the American Psychological Association's annual meeting. Psi Chi's original name was Sigma Pi Sigma, but it was learned that the name was already in used by an honor society in physics. "Psi Chi" was chosen as the honor society's official name at its second annual meeting in 1930 because of the name's similarity to the word "psychology."Membership
Membership is open to graduate and undergraduate men and women who are making the study of psychology one of their major interests, and who meet the minimum qualifications. Membership is attained through application and acceptance at the local chapter level. A list of institutions with Psi Chi chapters can be searched here. Psychology majors who attend two-year junior or community colleges may join Psi Beta, Psi Chi's sister society. Undergraduates must meet the following criteria in order to become members of Psi Chi:- Must be at least a second-semester sophomore
- Must be enrolled as a major or minor in a psychology program (or a program psychological in nature that is equivalent to a psych major)
- Must have completed 9 semester hours (or 14 quarter hours) of psychology courses
- Have an overall GPA in top 35% of their class (based on rankings within sophomore, junior, & senior classes); note: if the cutoff for the top 35% in their class is below 3.0, the applicant must have an overall GPA of at least 3.0 (on a 4-point scale)
- Have a psychology GPA of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale.
Awards & Grants
Psi Chi rewards its members annually with over $250,000 in various awards and grants programs.Activities
Psi Chi members may attend national and regional conventions, held yearly. Some chapters provide information on graduate study in psychology and assist members in the graduate school application process. Tutoring, community service, and social events are also common activities of Psi Chi chapters.Structure/Governance
Psi Chi, a federally-recognized, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is governed by the Psi Chi Board of Directors. The Board of Directors is composed of three presidents (President, President-Elect, Past-President), six regional vice-presidents (East, Midwest, Rocky Mountain, Southeast, Southwest, West), an executive director, and an executive officer. The presidents and regional vice-presidents are elected by Psi Chi chapters. The current President (2009-10) is Alvin Wang, PhD, University of Central Florida, while next year's president (2010-11) will be Michael D. Hall, PhD, James Madison University (VA). Regional vice-presidents serve two-year terms and may serve up to a total of two terms (four years). Regional vice-president elections are held in odd-numbered years for the Eastern, Rocky Mountain, and Western Regions, and in even-numbered years for the Midwestern, Southeastern, and Southwestern Regions. The term of office for regional vice-presidents begins on July 1. President candidates must have served at least one full two-year term as a regional vice-president. If elected by chapters to become president, the candidate becomes the society's President-Elect for one year, President the following year, and then the Past-President the year after. Presidents' terms of office begin at the close of each year's Board of Directors business meeting held at the Psi Chi/APA National Convention. Past officers of the organization can be viewed here. Psi Chi's fiscal year is from July 1 - June 30.Central Office
The Psi Chi Central Office fulfills the needs of the society as directed by the leadership of the Board of Directors. The current Central Office staff is composed of an executive director, executive officer, membership director, publications director, information systems manager, and awards director. As needed, the Board of Directors creates new staff positions to help better meet the needs of and provide benefits to members of the society. A list of Psi Chi's executive directors follows. The title of the "executive director" position has changed over the years: Secretary-Treasurer (1929-54), Executive Secretary (1954-68), Executive Director (1969-91), Executive Officer (1991-2003), Executive Director (2004-present).(1929-1958) Secretary-Treasurers
- 1929-30: Paul E. Martin
- 1930-34: Ruth B. Guilford (Ruth also served briefly in 1951 between Miriam Crowley and Lucille Forer)
- 1935-40: E. Louise Hoffeditz Porter
- 1941-42: Louise T. Grossnickle
- 1942-46: Dorothea W. F. Ewers
- 1946-48: Katharine M. M. Maurer (nee Cobb)
- 1949-51: Miriam E. Crowley (nee McCue)
- 1951-55: Lucille K. Forer
- 1956-58: Meredith J. Marks
(1958-1991) Ruth Cousins
Ruth Hubbard Cousins (b May 21, 1920) was one of the society's most famous executive directors, serving for more than 33 years (Dec 1958 - Oct 1991). She died on January 11, 2007. Read more about Ruth Cousins, her life, and her service to Psi Chi here.(1991-2003) Kay Wilson
After Cousins retired as executive director, Kay Wilson (b September 21, 1939) took over as executive officer (the title changed, but her position still functioned as executive director) from October 1991 until her death in June 2003 of cancer.(2004-2008) Virginia Andreoli Mathie
When Wilson died in 2003, the National Council reviewed the position of executive officer and decided to split the position's function into two positions: executive director and executive officer. A search began in 2003, and Virginia Andreoli Mathie, PhD, a professor of psychology at James Madison University (VA) previously, was hired for the executive director position and began on July 1, 2004. Dr. Mathie served until June 30, 2008. Paula Miller, who was the organization's previous membership and awards director (1997-2003), was hired as the executive officer in 2003, and served in that position until 2007. In March 2007, Lisa Mantooth, formerly of the Cleveland, TN Red Cross Chapter, began as executive officer and served through November 2009.(2008-present) Martha Zlokovich
Beginning July 1, 2008, Martha S. Potter Zlokovich, PhD, from Southeast Missouri State University and a former Psi Chi National President, began serving as Psi Chi's newest executive director.Current/Past Staff Members
Executive Officer: Lisa Mantooth (2007-09); Paula Miller (2003-07) Interim Executive Officer: Melissa Strickland (2009-present) Director of Awards: Melissa Strickland (2006-present); Jennifer Lopez (2005); Brian Welsh (2004); Paula Miller (1997-2003) Director of Membership: Amie Austin Hearn (2000-present); Paula Miller (1997-2000); Laura Senecker (199?-97); Donna Bolin (198?-9?) Director of Publishing: Susan Iles (2004-present); Daniel P. Bockert (1989-2003) Information Systems Manager: Mark Cobbe (2007-09); Scott Gast (1998-2007)External links
- Psi Chi: official website
- Psi Beta: Psi Chi's sister honor society - for psychology majors at two-year junior and community colleges
- American Psychological Association (APA): Psi Chi is an affiliate of APA and holds programming each year at APA's annual conventions
- Association for Psychological Science (APS): Psi Chi is also an affiliate of APS and holds programming each year at APS's annual conventions
- Association of College Honor Societies (ACHS): Psi Chi is a member of ACHS, the nation's only certifying agency for college and university honor societies (founded in 1925)