Phi Beta Kappa is both the oldest and the most prestigious undergraduate honor society in the country. It was founded at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA, in 1776, as a society to preserve academic freedom and liberal arts education. The Greek initials stand for the motto Philosophia Biou Kybernetes: "Love of wisdom (is) the (helmsman) guide of life." The Alpha Chapter of South Carolina was chartered at the University of South Carolina in 1926. For more information, see also https://www.pbk.org/ and https://sc.edu/pbk.