A Final Club is an undergraduate social club at Harvard College.
Origins The historical basis for the name "final
clubs" descends from a time when Harvard had a variety of clubs for students of
each class year, with students of different years being in different
clubs, and the "final clubs" were so named because they were the last social
club a person could join before graduation. The clubs were founded in
the 19th century after Harvard banned traditional fraternities in the 1850s.
The clubs There are currently six all-male clubs
at Harvard: A.D.
Delphic Fly, founded in 1836;
Owl Phoenix-SK
Porcellian – sometimes called the "Porc" or the "P.C.", founded in 1791
Five all-female clubs at Harvard: Bee Club
Isis Club Pleiades Society
Sablière Society La Vie Club
And two co-ed clubs at Harvard: Fox
Spee. History
The Harvard men's final clubs trace their roots to the late 18th century,
while the five all-female social clubs were founded more recently. Another
women's organization, the Seneca, distinguishes itself as a "501(c)(3)
nonprofit women's organization that is often misidentified as a final club."
Several other clubs are also 501(c)(3) organizations and engage in some
community service. The Bee was founded in 1991; The Seneca in 1999; Isis in
2000; Pleiades in 2002; Sabliere in 2002; and La Vie in 2008.
(The co-ed Signet Society, The Harvard Crimson, Harvard Advocate and Harvard
Lampoon also have selective membership, but their charters define them as
something other than social organizations, based on their literary
or artistic characteristics.) Eight of the male clubs own real estate
in Harvard Square. Clubhouses usually include dining halls, libraries, and
game rooms. Most are staffed with chefs, stewards, and other paid personnel. Most
serve lunch and dinner meals at regular schedules. The Delphic Club boasts a
regulation-size squash court. The Bee Club rents space from the Fly
Club at 45 Dunster Street in a building that was previously the D.U. Club before
the D.U. Club's graduate membership merged with the Fly in 1996. In a
controversial move, the Fly did not allow former D.U. undergraduate members
to integrate, and subsequently the undergraduate D.U. membership formed The
Oak Club. La Vie Club rents a colonial style house
on Garden Street. The Isis rents a portion of The Owl's premises. The
Sabliere Society recently obtained property in the Square. The Pleiades
Society recently obtained an apartment on Waterhouse Street.
In 1984, as required by Title IX legislation, the clubs opted to become
fully independent, and since then have maintained themselves beyond university
regulation. The clubs own real estate property in Cambridge, collectively
assessed at over $17 million as of 2006. Years ago Harvard College freshmen could
join a freshman club, then a "waiting club," and finally a "final club." Of
the final clubs still in existence, only the P.C. and the Fox were initially
founded as final clubs. The Phoenix SK is the amalgam of three separate clubs:
the Phoenix, the Sphinx, and the Kalumet. The Iroquois Club built the
edifice now owned by the Office for the Arts at Harvard, at 74 Mount Auburn
Street. Their dance studio is the former Iroquois dining hall. The original Pi
Eta Club built the structure now occupied by Upstairs On The Square, and
Grendel's Den. Each fall the clubs hold "punch season,"
during which select sophomores and juniors are invited to a series of
social events. After each event, more likely prospective members, or
"punches", are invited back. After the last event, called a "final dinner",
each club elects 10–30 new members who then choose among the clubs they have
been asked to join. Being "punched" refers to receiving an invitation to the
first punch event. Once the punch process has begun, the verb "to punch"
can also refer to a prospective member's attending the clubs' events, e.g. "Is he
really punching both the Delphic and A.D.?"
The clubs have an undergraduate membership of around forty apiece,
amounting to over 10% of the eligible male undergraduates, and 5% of eligible
female undergraduates. The clubs have varying entrance restrictions for
guests. Some final clubs often hold parties and open their doors to women
guests and male guests of members. Others, like the A.D., have only in
recent history opened their doors to female guests of members and still do
not allow male guests. Others rarely welcome non-members. The Porcellian does
not allow non-members past "the bicycle room" in the building's foyer; the
Delphic and Owl permit their guests access only to their basements or
courtyards through separate entrances; the Fox has a basement room with a
separate entrance for guests; The Phoenix-S.K. allows guests access to
their dining room, courtyard, and, on special occasions, their lounge, through
a non-members' entrance. Political backlash
In January 2006 national attention focused on the Harvard final club system
as a result of the confirmation hearings of Samuel Alito. Alito came under
criticism as a result of his membership in Concerned Alumni of Princeton, a
conservative group that opposed affirmative action and the admission of
women into Princeton. One of the leading Democrats highlighting this charge was
Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy. Conservatives, however, responded by
pointing out Kennedy's membership in the Owl Club of Harvard. As a result of the
political fallout, Senator Kennedy left the club.
In August of that same year, Massachusetts Democratic Gubernatorial
candidate Deval Patrick came under fire for his membership in the Fly Club.
Critics viewed Patrick's membership in the club as contradictory to his image
as a champion of civil rights. Patrick countered that he had left the club in
the early 1980s when he realized that it contradicted his values, although the
club itself had Patrick's name on its roster as late as 2006.
In popular culture Film
The Social Network: The Phoenix – S K Club and Porcellian Club were both
featured in the movie. Literature
The Accidental Billionaires by Ben Mezrich.
See also Collegiate secret societies in North
America References
Further reading Harrington, Rebecca M., "How the Final
Clubbers Fool You - The Trend is Nigh", The Harvard Crimson, Thursday, March 2,
2006 Hemel, Daniel J., "E-mails Offer Glimpse
of Club: Isis e-mail archives reveal details of 'punch' process, relationship
with Bee Club", The Harvard Crimson, Monday, October 24, 2005
Phillips, Frank, "Patrick says he quit The Fly Club in 1983: Nine exclusive
clubs at Harvard limit membership to men. A gubernatorial candidate's link to
one renews debate on elitism", The Boston Globe, August 3, 2006
"Kennedy Ends His Final Club Ties: Senator withdraws from Owl Club after
conservatives criticized his membership", The Harvard Crimson,
Tuesday, January 17, 2006 The Oak Club, [1], Retrieved September
11, 2012 Sachs, Stephen E., "What's Wrong With
Final Clubs: The Public Interest", The Harvard Crimson, Tuesday, October 23,
2001