The Philanthropic Assembly proudly continues the rebellious tradition of Society father David Gillespie, who led the organization to break away from the Debating Society just twenty-nine days after its foundation. The Phis follow the ideal of libertas (hinting at a long-standing point of disagreement between the two Societies) in addition to the old Di values of virtus and scientia. Phi Speaker William “Stormy” Epley currently leads the Phis in the continual search for self-betterment. Find a list of current active Philanthropic Senators below. The Philanthropic Constitution may be viewed here.
Alex Rhinehalt, Senator
Senior | Political Science
Joined: November 15th, 2021
“Horses have no morality, they live by godless horse rules.”
– Cody Johnson
Maddox Addy, Senator
Senior | Sociology and Political Science
Joined: February 28th, 2022
“I comprehended that it was my task: to make difficulties everywhere.”
– Søren Kierkegaard
Andrew Forbes, Senator
Junior | Public Policy and Economics
Joined: September 12th, 2022
“Not TV or illegal drugs but the automobile has been the chief destroyer of American communities.”
– Jane Jacobs
Dillon Page, Ambassador to the Italian Republic
Junior | History and Anthropology
Joined: October 10th, 2022
“Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.”
– Soren Kierkegaard
Ethan Crook, Senator
Senior | Computer Science and Physics
Joined: March 20th, 2023
“For me, I am driven by two main philosophies: know more today about the world than I knew yesterday and lessen the suffering of others. You’d be surprised how far that gets you.”
– Neil deGrasse Tyson
Zihan Wu, Senator
Sophomore | Philosophy and Economics
Joined: February 19th, 2024
Isabel Ebin, Senator
Sophomore | Music and Economics
Joined: February 26th, 2024
“You might think that. I couldn’t possibly comment.”
– Francis Urquhart
Neah Trempé, Senator
Sophomore | English and Comparative Literature
Joined: March 4th, 2024
“In matters of grave importance, style, not sincerity, is the vital thing.”
– Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest
Joseph Kledis, Senator
Sophomore | Economics
Joined: March 4th, 2024
“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”
– Albert Einstein
William “Stormy” Epley, Phi Speaker
Senior | Political Science and English
Joined: March 18th, 2024
“In a world too often governed by corruption and arrogance, it can be difficult to stay true to one’s philosophical and literary principles.”
– Lemony Snickets
Cristina Matlock, Senator
Senior | Art and Geology
Joined: September 9th, 2024
“I cannot foretell the future.”
Jack Barr, Senator
Freshman | Peace, War, and Defense
Joined: September 30th, 2024
“We lose—because we win—Gamblers—recollecting which Toss their dice again!”
– Emily Dickinson
Aakash Palathra, Sergeant at Arms
Freshman | Global Studies and Public Policy
Joined: September 30th, 2024
“Ah! Don’t say you agree with me. When people agree with me, I always feel that I must be wrong.”
– Oscar Wilde
Gray Ryan, Senator
Freshman | Biology
Joined: October 7th, 2024
“I know how I live my life. i have a little magnet brain that attracts the kind of things that obsess me”
– Sophie Calle
Cassius Khan, Historian
Freshman | Classics and Journalism
Joined: October 14th, 2024
“Our curiosity goes with you on your journey. You walk in the footsteps of those who came before you, and your path guides those who will follow later.”
– Outer Wilds
Charlotte Sullivan, Senator
Freshman | Political Science and Mathematics
Joined: October 21st, 2024
“A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.”
– Maya Angelou
Isa Thomas, Senator
Sophomore| Philosophy and Environmental Studies
Joined: November 4th, 2024
Ewa Zapała, Senator
Freshman | Neuroscience
Joined: November 4th, 2024
“You can’t ever reach perfection, but you can believe in an asymptote toward which you are ceaselessly striving.”
– Paul Kalanithi, “When Breath Becomes Air
Ella Smith, Senator
Freshman | History
Joined: November 11th, 2024
“I, however, find love to be quite simple. Love is the stack of biographies on my nightstand with a bookmark near the end.”
– Julia Nicole Camp (A Bookmark Near the End)
Lochlan Downard, Senator
Freshman | Political Science
Joined: November 17th, 2024
“One must imagine Sisyphus happy.”
– Albert Camus
Amelia Norris, Senator
Freshman | Biology
Joined: November 17th, 2024
“If speaking kindly to plants helps them grow, imagine what speaking kindly to humans can do.”
– Tara Mackey
Hannah Howard, Senator
Freshman | Biology, Communications
Joined: January 27th, 2025
“But we. . . are glad to be living. If this is a vice, then we wish no virtue.”
– Ayn Rand, Anthem
Joseph England, Senator
Sophomore | English Literature, German Studies
Joined: February 3rd, 2025
“Be brave, be wicked, be drunk, be reckless, be dissolute, be despotic, be an anarchist. . . be anything you like, but for pity’s sake be it to the top of your bent. Live- live fully, live passionately, live disastrously!”
– Vita Sackville-West
Keily Uchis, Senator
Freshman | Psychology
Joined: February 3rd, 2025
“Hay cosas que se tatúan sin tinta.”
– Kali Uchis
EJ Foster, Senator
Sophomore | History, Anthropology
Joined: February 24th, 2025
“If you’re going through hell, keep going.”
– Winston Churchill
