The Phi Beta Kappa Visiting Scholar Program makes available each year twelve or more distinguished scholars who will visit colleges and universities with chapters of Phi Beta Kappa. They spend two days on each campus, meeting informally with students and faculty members, taking part in classroom discussions, and giving a public lecture open to the entire academic community. The purpose of the program is to contribute to the intellectual life of the institution by making possible an exchange of ideas between the Visiting Scholars and the resident faculty and students. The Visiting Scholar Program has sent 566 Scholars on 4,736 two-day visits since it was established in 1956.