|
|
|
History of Pi Lambda Theta |
|
|
|
Founding During the first decade of the twentieth century, university schools of education promoted the four-year degree in education as a marker of professionalism and quality for teachers. Not all elementary school teachers—the vast majority of public teachers—earned a bachelor’s degree, and even fewer educations, typically school administrators and teacher educators, advanced to graduate level studies. Deans of education wished to promote the high standards and academic qualities of their graduates and encouraged the formation of honorary societies of education at their universities. In 1910, the all-male Phi Delta Kappa was founded, and all-female groups of educators organized at approximately seven universities that would later host Pi Lambda Theta chapters. Membership in Pi Lambda Theta indicated high scholastic achievement and leadership in education. The women of Pi Lambda Theta were extraordinary, given the education and professional position of women generally in society. Many Pi Lambda Thetans earned doctoral degrees and went on to work in school administration, educational research, teacher education, and even government posts. Notable Pi Lambda Thetans included Louise Stanley, the Director of the U.S. Bureau of Home Economics, who was the highest ranking female scientist in the U.S., and Bess Goodykoontz, the U.S. Deputy Commissioner of Education. Pi Lambda Theta nationalized in 1917 with seven chapters: University of Missouri (Alpha); Syracuse University (Beta); University of Kansas (Gamma); University of Pittsburgh (Delta); University of Minnesota (Epsilon); University of Washington (Zeta) and University of Pennsylvania (Eta). The organization began to grow so that by 1930, there were over two dozen of chapters, most located at university schools of education, and a few in alumni chapters. Pi Lambda Theta as Non-Exclusive Pi Lambda Theta’s membership was based on academic merit; however, in 1927, the By-Laws were changed to restrict membership to Caucasian women only. Explicitly barred from membership were Asians and African Americans; some had already been inducted into membership, and this had led to the race-based restriction being added to the By-Laws. Not all Pi Lambda Thetans agreed with the race-based exclusion policy, and immediately after its passage, a group of some of the national officers began a campaign to reverse this by-law and again make membership open to all women based on their ability, regardless of their ethnic background. These officers, including Maude McBroom and Genevieve Knight Bixler, visited chapters and pressed the issue to the general membership. At the 1931 Biennial Council meeting, the delegates reversed the 1927 membership restriction clause and made membership in Pi Lambda Theta based solely on academic merit. Membership demographics did not change very much, however, but this was due to larger educational and residential patterns in the U.S., not because of racism or xenophobia among Pi Lambda Thetans. Pi Lambda Theta’s chapters emerged primarily at public institutions in the Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, and the West, where there was a tradition of coeducation in higher education. The South, in contrast, did not develop a tradition of women’s attendance at college; many southern universities remained male-only until as late as the 1950s, thus excluding women from attending the type of institutions at which Pi Lambda Theta formed chapters. Additionally, most African Americans lived in the South, and their educational levels were low, with few attending higher education generally. The South also had a tradition of segregated education, so that those African Americans who did attend college went to segregated institutions. Thus, in the South, at the type of institutions at which Pi Lambda Theta formed chapters, there were no women or African Americans. Pi Lambda Theta, therefore, did not form any chapters at Southern universities until the 1950s, and the organization still has few chapters there in relation to other geographic regions. This dynamic meant that Pi Lambda Theta had few African Americans and Southern women generally as members, because of these larger patterns and cultural traditions that de-emphasized college-going for women and African Americans. Expansion of Pi Lambda Theta Until the mid to late 1940s, Pi Lambda Theta only permitted chapters to be located at university schools of education or in area chapters that really served as alumnae chapters for universities. This policy excluded the more numerous teachers colleges, in part because they were seen as having lower academic standards. For instance, in the 1910s, not all teachers college had a four-year course of study and none offered graduate work, both the hallmarks of university schools of education. These teachers colleges had their own honorary society, Kappa Delta Pi. By the 1940s, the curriculum at teachers colleges changed, as many became state colleges and began to offer a standard four-year course of study. With these changes and with Pi Lambda Theta’s desire to grow, the organization decided to permit chapters to be located at teachers colleges. This decision-making process took a full ten years, as many Pi Lambda Thetans worried that opening membership to the graduates of state teachers colleges would change the standards and character of Pi Lambda Theta. Unlike university schools of education, state teachers colleges emphasized the preparation of classroom teachers rather than administrators, teacher educators, and educational researchers. By opening initiation to the graduates of these institutions, Pi Lambda Theta expanded its membership and classroom teachers became a large majority of the membership. The next time membership requirements expanded was in the early 1970s. Pi Lambda Theta had been founded as a sister organization to the all-male Phi Delta Kappa. In the late 1960s with the emerging feminist movement, women began demanding access to educational careers and opportunities formerly reserved to men. The all-male Phi Delta Kappa was not immune to these demands, and some Phi Delta Kappa chapters at some universities began to initiate women. Both Phi Delta Kappa and Pi Lambda Theta were unsure of how universities would see their historically single-sex membership requirements, especially with the passage of Title IX of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act that barred sex discrimination and threatened federal funding for institutions that discriminated. With the grassroots pressure building for sex integration and the changed legal climate, Phi Delta Kappa decided to become coeducational; Pi Lambda Theta did, too, only two months later. What had been approximately sixty years of relatively peaceful coexistence—many chapters of Phi Delta Kappa and Pi Lambda Theta held annual joint events on their campuses—became immediate competition for membership. However, Pi Lambda Theta, while much smaller than Phi Delta Kappa, adhered to its ideals of academic excellence. Pi Lambda Theta’s academic standards for admission were higher than those of Phi Delta Kappa, which enlarged its membership by lowering required grade point average (G.P.A.) for membership. Since the, Pi Lambda Theta also has expanded its membership base, but has not lowered its standards. G.P.A. requirements for initiation still remain at 3.5. The broadening of membership has come by reaching out to different institutions through Direct Honors. Additionally, the Pi Lambda Theta program Project Excellence offers membership to experienced teachers recognized as highly effective in the classroom by organizations other than higher education institutions. Professional Activities Pi Lambda Theta is an honorary society, but it is also a professional organization and has always engaged in activities that advance education. From as early as 1924, Pi Lambda Theta offered a $1,000 scholarship to women engaged in educational research. For the time, the amount was quite generous, especially considering that Phi Delta Kappa did not even award scholarships. Additionally, Pi Lambda Theta engaged in a number of research projects. One was a study of child-rearing practices conducted with the U.S. Bureau of Home Economics in 1928. Another was a commissioned study of women’s career opportunities in education done in 1933. During World War II, Pi Lambda Theta conducted a study of professional women’s contributions to the war effort, showing that women acted in professional and leadership capacities in their communities and states. Throughout this time, the national organization also provided study materials for each chapter so that yearly chapter programs could revolve around specific topic of study. Publishing research and materials on education also was a part of Pi Lambda Theta from its early years. The Pi Lambda Theta Journal not only served as a house organ, but also published research articles; it has since be re-titled educational HORIZONS® and continues to publish articles by leading scholars in education and to address timely educational policy issues. Pi Lambda Theta also published two books on educational research in the 1960s. Entitled The Body of Knowledge Unique to the Profession and The Evaluation of Teaching, these texts were edited volumes summarizing the research discussed by major educational figures, who Pi Lambda Theta invited to speak at two conferences. These were to inform educational research, to expose Pi Lambda Theta’s teacher members to the scholarship, and to provide visibility to the organization within the profession. Pi Lambda Theta’s offering of leadership conferences in the 1980s and 1990s attempted to continue giving membership access to professional learning opportunities, but the educational landscape changed by the twenty-first century as states began to require teachers to earn professional learning credits from certain providers to maintain licensure. For this reason, Pi Lambda Theta’s emerging relationship with the National Staff Development Council, a lead provider of professional learning, is critical. The relationship provides critical and substantial financial discounts to Pi Lambda Thetans who attend NSDC professional learning opportunities, as well as other professional learning opportunities that are aligned with the NSDC standards. In this way, Pi Lambda Theta is providing its membership with clear benefits and also supporting the work of organizations like NSDC that advance high standards for teaching. Pi Lambda Theta has changed over its hundred-year history, but it has maintained its distinction as the most selective honorary and professional organization in education today. It has continued to support members’ research and scholarship, and has promoted its members as professionals intent on life-long learning. |
