Emma Tait Wins Bogorad Award

2015 Dec 4

Emma Tait, a geography major from Marshfield, Vermont, has won the Bogorad Award, an honor presented by the University of Vermont's Phi Beta Kappa chapter recognizing outstanding achievement in the liberal arts based on the academic record through the end of the sophomore year.

The award is named in honor of Samuel Nathan Bogorad, a longtime friend and affiliate of the Alpha of Vermont chapter. Professor Bogorad was elected to Phi Beta Kappa at Brown University in 1939. He joined the faculty at UVM in 1946. While in Burlington, he served for eight years as the chair of the English Department, and he held the Corse Professorship in English Language and Literature until his retirement in 1982. He remained an active member of the university family until his death in December 1993. For years, Professor Bogorad claimed for himself the privilege of bestowing Phi Beta Kappa keys on new initiates, thus being the first to congratulate them on the distinction they have achieved.

UVM's Phi Beta Kappa chapter, chartered in 1848, has a rich history in its own right, being the first chapter in the nation to elect women and African Americans to membership.