Gardner Elected to APS

Hobbs Professor Howard Gardner has been elected as a member of the American Philosophical Society (APS) in Philadelphia. The APS is the oldest learned society in the country and represents the height of scholarly achievement.

"I am honored and humbled by my election to the APS," Gardner said. "In some professions, you are judged by the amount of money you make, in others by the fame that you accrue. When it comes to scholarship, I've always agreed with economist Paul Samuelson that 'the greatest tribute for a scholar is the respect of one's peers.'"

APS was founded by Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson served as one of its early presidents. All members are elected to the society. Today there are 791 American members and 153 foreign members in fields ranging from mathematics to the arts.

Gardner, who is best known for his theory of multiple intelligences, has authored 20 books on a variety of subjects including structuralism, cognitive science, creativity, leadership, and arts education. Most recently, he has acted as a principal investigator in the GoodWork Project, a large-scale study of professional ethics during a period of rapid change and extremely powerful market forces.

Gardner received his bachelor's and doctoral degrees in developmental psychology from Harvard. He has also received 21 honorary degrees from a variety of countries, including Ireland, Israel, Italy, and Chile.

He is a recipient of a MacArthur Prize Fellowship (1981), the University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award (1990), and a fellowship from the John S. Guggenheim Memorial Foundation (2000). Gardner has also been elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Education.