Phi Kappa Tau History and Archives

07/27/2026

The newest additions to the Phi Kappa Tau archives come from former Phi Kappa Tau Foundation trustee Tom Jeswald, a member of Beta Chapter at Ohio University. These two copies of "Side Lights" from 1910 and 1912 recall the formative years of the Fraternity, long before the name Phi Kappa Tau. The 1910 issue is the publication of the Ohio University Union, the co-ed organization that evolved into Beta Chapter. By the 1912 issue, Side Lights had been adopted as the magazine of the fledgling "National" Phrenocon Association with just three chapters, all in Ohio. Pages from the 1912 issue contain the Miami and Ohio U. chapter houses, the 3-chapter directory and a history of Aloquin, the organization formed by female members of the Ohio University Union. But that's a story for another day. Stay tuned.

07/22/2026

Richard Ludwick (Evansville 1983) began his duties as the 18th president of the University of Findlay earlier this month. Former Phi Kappa Tau national legal counsel, the Delta Beta Chapter alumnus had previously served as president of the University of St. Thomas in Texas.

University of Findlay announced the appointment of Richard L. Ludwick, J.D., D.Ed., as its 18th president, effective July 1, 2026

07/20/2026

Delta Zeta Sorority just completed its Norma Minch Andrisek Leadership Conference at Miami University. The conference's namesake was the wife of Phi Tau John Richard Andrisek (Baldwin Wallace).

07/17/2026

Longtime Gamma Chapter volunteer and advisor J. Philip Robertson (Ohio State 1954) entered Chapter Eternal earlier this week at the age of 91. Phil was a fixture at Gamma Chapter serving as advisor and member of the Board of Governors and for many years was the editor of the chapter newsletter, the "Gamma Ray." He served the national fraternity as a domain director from 1967-71 and had recently been involved in helping start the associate chapter at the University of Dayton. The son of Vivian O. Robertson (Transylvania 1921), Phil and his brother Shep both joined Gamma Chapter. He proudly considered himself part of a 4-generation Phi Tau family as he was an "adopted" father of Richard Tillman (Ohio State 1985) and Richard's son Andrew is a founding member of the University of Dayton Associate Chapter.

View J. Philip Robertson's obituary, send flowers, find service dates, and sign the guestbook.

06/30/2026

We were saddened to hear last week of the death of longtime Phi Kappa Tau Foundation and Fraternity leader Frederick E. Mills (Ohio State 1966). A Foundation officer for two decades, Fred was tapped as secretary of the Foundation board in the late 1970s and went on to serve as treasurer, president and chairman until his retirement in 1997. Under his leadership, Fred saw the Foundation evolve from a small volunteer-run organization through its groundbreaking 1982-84 capital campaign to become a professionally-staffed multi-million dollar organization. He developed a close relationship with Foundation chairman and founder Ewing Boles in the later years of Boles' life, sharing daily early-morning telephone conversations. In his role as volunteer head of the Foundation, he also served for many years as a member of the Phi Kappa Tau National Council, working to build strong and trusting relationships with Fraternity leaders. Chapter Eternal has gained a great Phi Tau leader whose impact on the lives of our members will be felt for decades to come.

Frederick Earl Mills, 79, of Fostoria, Ohio, passed away suddenly on 6/24/2026 in Bradenton, Florida after a brief illness. Fred was born in...

06/04/2026

Dr. Larry Paul (Muhlenberg 1953), professor emeritus of physiology at Ohio State University has entered Chapter Eternal.

Celebrate the life of Lawrence Paul, leave a kind word or memory and get funeral service information care of Schoedinger Northwest.

06/04/2026

A beautiful memorial tribute to the late Joseph Dick (Akron 1951), creator of Zippy the Akron mascot who recently entered Chapter Eternal.

05/27/2026

Judge James Lawrence King (Florida 1946), Federal District Court Judge in the Southern District of Florida since 1970 has died. An inaugural member of the Phi Kappa Tau Hall of Fame, Judge King was still listed as a senior status judge at the time of his death at 98. The Federal Justice Building in Miami was named for him by the US Congress in 1996. A celebration of his life is being held there this afternoon.

U.S. District Judge James Lawrence King, a Miami native, was appointed by President Richard Nixon in 1970.