Alpha Pi Mu () is an American

honor society In the United States, an honor society is an organization that recognizes individuals who rank above a set standard in various domains such as academics, leadership, and other personal achievements, not all of which are based on ranking systems. ...

for Industrial and

Systems A system is a group of interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of rules to form a unified whole. A system, surrounded and influenced by its environment, is described by its boundaries, structure and purpose and is exp ...

Engineering students. All chapters are based in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, with the exception of one university in Puerto Rico which is an

unincorporated territory of the United States Unincorporated may refer to: * Unincorporated area, land not governed by a local municipality * Unincorporated entity, a type of organization * Unincorporated territories of the United States, territories under U.S. jurisdiction, to which Congress ...

History

The founder of Alpha Pi Mu was James T. French, who in 1949 was a senior industrial engineering student at

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...

. He recruited nine men that were members of the

chapter of

Tau Beta Pi The Tau Beta Pi Association (commonly Tau Beta Pi, , or TBP) is the oldest engineering honor society and the second oldest collegiate honor society in the United States. It honors engineering students in American universities who have shown a ...

as the first members of Alpha Pi Mu. Alpha Pi Mu is the only nationally accepted

industrial engineering Industrial engineering (IE) is concerned with the design, improvement and installation of integrated systems of people, materials, information, equipment and energy. It draws upon specialized knowledge and skill in the mathematical, physical, an ...

honor society. The

engineers who led the initial developmental work wanted an organization to provide a common ground "on which their outstanding young engineers could exchange ideas," and to provide experiences which could help their future professional development. The Alpha Pi Mu Honor Society aims to:

Confer recognition upon students of Industrial and Systems Engineering who have shown exceptional academic interest and abilities in their field, encourage the advancement and quality of Industrial and Systems Engineering education, unify the student body of the Industrial Engineering department in presenting its needs and ideals to the faculty.

Alpha Pi Mu became a member of the

Association of College Honor Societies The Association of College Honor Societies (ACHS) is a voluntary association of national collegiate and post-graduate honor societies. It was established on December 30, 1925 by six organizations: Alpha Omega Alpha, the Order of the Coif, Phi B ...

in 1952. The society has 68 chapters that have initiated more than 47,095 members as of 2014.

Symbols

French chose the Greek letter name Alpha Pi Mu to represent the three major areas of Industrial Engineering at the time: Administration, Production, and Methods. The society's motto is "Humble service to humanity is the goal of the true engineer". The society's colors are purple and light yellow. Its stole is white with an embroidered logo.

Activities

The society provides $1,000 scholarships to outstanding members. Its members also participate in activities that improve their campus and the profession.

Membership

Students of Industrial and

Engineering programs who rank in the upper one-third of the senior Industrial and Systems Engineering class and the upper one-fifth of the junior Industrial and Systems Engineering class are considered for membership on the basis of leadership, ethics, sociability, character, and breadth of interest. Graduate students and alumni may be elected to membership if they meet the requirements. Faculty members and professional industrial and systems engineers may be elected to faculty and honorary membership respectively have proven themselves outstanding professionals in the field. Around 940 members are initiated each year.

Chapters

The Society has established 68 chapters since 1949.

References

External Links

* {{authority control Association of College Honor Societies Engineering honor societies Student organizations established in 1949 1949 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state)