Omicron Delta Epsilon
Encyclopedia
Omicron Delta Epsilon is an international honor society
in the field of economics
. Resulting from the merger of Omicron Delta Gamma and Omicron Chi Epsilon, ODE was founded in 1963 . Its board of trustees includes well-known economist
s such as Robert Lucas, Kenneth Arrow
, and Robert Solow
. ODE is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies
; the ACHS indicates that Omicron Delta Epsilon has 88,000 members. ODE currently has 578 active chapters worldwide . New members consist of undergraduate and graduate students, as well as college and university faculty; the academic achievement required to obtain membership for students can be raised by individual chapters, as well as the ability to run for office or wear honors cords during graduation. It publishes a journal
entitled The American Economist twice each year.
was the founder and first President of Omicron Chi Epsilon (OCE) in 1955 while he was a student at City College of New York. Dr. Brown conceived the creation and the development of, first, a national, and then an international Honor Society in Economics. Friends and colleagues report that they were amazed watching this polite and deferring young person 'pestering' Nobel Prize winners and other giants of the economics profession to endorse, become involved in, and support this initiative, and succeeding.
The first annual meeting of OCE was held at Fordham College in New York City in the spring of 1958. Dr. Brown subsequently learned of the existence of another honor society in economics, Omicron Delta Gamma, founded in 1915 by John R. Commons, University of Wisconsin and Frank Taussig, Harvard University, which, while older and formally larger (more chapters) than Omicron Chi Epsilon, was less active than the younger OCE. Alan was the prime mover to facilitate a merger in 1963 between the two societies, renamed Omicron Delta Epsilon (ODE), adding "International" to its non-Greek name. At that point, ODE really took off. Dr. Brown was the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Omicron Delta Epsilon from its inception in 1963 until 1982.
Honor society
In the United States, an honor society is a rank organization that recognizes excellence among peers. Numerous societies recognize various fields and circumstances. The Order of the Arrow, for example, is the national honor society of the Boy Scouts of America...
in the field of economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
. Resulting from the merger of Omicron Delta Gamma and Omicron Chi Epsilon, ODE was founded in 1963 . Its board of trustees includes well-known economist
Economist
An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
s such as Robert Lucas, Kenneth Arrow
Kenneth Arrow
Kenneth Joseph Arrow is an American economist and joint winner of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics with John Hicks in 1972. To date, he is the youngest person to have received this award, at 51....
, and Robert Solow
Robert Solow
Robert Merton Solow is an American economist particularly known for his work on the theory of economic growth that culminated in the exogenous growth model named after him...
. ODE is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies
Association of College Honor Societies
The Association of College Honor Societies , founded in 1925, is a predominantly American organization that serves a number of functions with respect to national collegiate and post-graduate honor societies...
; the ACHS indicates that Omicron Delta Epsilon has 88,000 members. ODE currently has 578 active chapters worldwide . New members consist of undergraduate and graduate students, as well as college and university faculty; the academic achievement required to obtain membership for students can be raised by individual chapters, as well as the ability to run for office or wear honors cords during graduation. It publishes a journal
Academic publishing
Academic publishing describes the subfield of publishing which distributes academic research and scholarship. Most academic work is published in journal article, book or thesis form. The part of academic written output that is not formally published but merely printed up or posted is often called...
entitled The American Economist twice each year.
History of ODE
Alan A. BrownAlan A. Brown
Alan A. Brown, PhD was a Professor of Economics who founded the international honor society in Economics, Omicron Delta Epsilon , which he began while he was a student at City College of New York in 1955, and which now has 600 chapters worldwide. This was a significant accomplishment, as he came...
was the founder and first President of Omicron Chi Epsilon (OCE) in 1955 while he was a student at City College of New York. Dr. Brown conceived the creation and the development of, first, a national, and then an international Honor Society in Economics. Friends and colleagues report that they were amazed watching this polite and deferring young person 'pestering' Nobel Prize winners and other giants of the economics profession to endorse, become involved in, and support this initiative, and succeeding.
The first annual meeting of OCE was held at Fordham College in New York City in the spring of 1958. Dr. Brown subsequently learned of the existence of another honor society in economics, Omicron Delta Gamma, founded in 1915 by John R. Commons, University of Wisconsin and Frank Taussig, Harvard University, which, while older and formally larger (more chapters) than Omicron Chi Epsilon, was less active than the younger OCE. Alan was the prime mover to facilitate a merger in 1963 between the two societies, renamed Omicron Delta Epsilon (ODE), adding "International" to its non-Greek name. At that point, ODE really took off. Dr. Brown was the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Omicron Delta Epsilon from its inception in 1963 until 1982.
External links
- Omicron Delta Epsilon--The International Economics Honor Society – Official site.
- Information on "The American Economist" – includes abstracts of previously published articles.
- ODE at the University of Texas – The University of Texas ODE chapter