The Department of Psychological Science has an active chapter of Psi Chi, the International Honor Society in Psychology. Its stated purpose is "to encourage, stimulate, and maintain excellence in scholarship of the individual members in all fields, particularly in psychology, and to advance the science of psychology." The organization was started by two students at the University of Kansas in 1927. In 1929, at a meeting of the American Psychological Association, the organization was officially chartered, with 11 chapters as part of the original charter. Currently, the organization has over 1, 100 chapters and over 700, 000 lifetime members.
The LMU Chapter of Psi Chi was started by the late Dr. Ron Barrett, with 30 members being initiated at the inaugural initiation on May 9, 1979. Since that time, we have initiated over 800 members into our University chapter. Each fall students who meet the academic requirements for the membership in the Society are invited to apply, and each spring we initiate a new class of Psi Chi members.