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The Richmond Society (RS), also known as Sub Rosa, is the oldest surviving secret society on the campus of the University of Richmond. Founded in 1895, the society consists of influential students on campus with goals of enriching campus life and supporting the University. The early history of the organization was never written because the group was concern with maintaining secrecy.

Secret societies are a popular facet of university lore across the US. Notable examples consist of the University of Virginia’s Seven Society and Yale University’s Skull and Bones society. These societies are developed to cater to the different needs of each university. Many were founded with benevolent intentions.

Like other societies, RS promotes campus camaraderie, philanthropy and the needs of the school. RS accomplishes its goals via grass roots initiatives and established university positions of authority. RS members are all campus leaders and have serious influence across the campus.

The most visible tradition of the society is marking the campus with the RS symbol. Recently, the university newspaper published a story regarding the recent actions of the Richmond Society. The author wrote, “The symbol -- three red overlapping squares above three linked circles all appearing below a double-arch -- was found on the main walkway to the Robins School of Business, the walkway into the second floor of the Tyler Haynes Commons closest to Boatwright Memorial Library and the brick walkway in front of the University post office. Although Sub Rosa appears to have been in existence for some time now, this year marks its first attempt at reaching out and communicating with the university community, said Capt. Beth Simonds of the University Police Department.”