Pi Alpha Phi Fraternity, Inc. (, also Pi Alpha Phi or PAPhi) was an American university-level

fraternity A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...

. It was founded in 1929 at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

. On August 1, 2023, Pi Alpha Phi Fraternity announced that it was closing all of its chapters. At the time, it was the oldest active Asian-American interest fraternity in the United States. It was a founding member of the National APIDA Panhellenic Association.

History

Origins

When Pi Alpha Phi was founded in the 1920s, traditional Greek letter fraternities along with the rest of the nation, legally discriminated against men of color. In 1928, Wing C. Chan, Dong Wing Tom, and Elmer Leong, members of the class of 1930 at the

, had the idea to start a fraternity for the several hundred students of Chinese descent. Six students signed the fraternity's charter in both Chinese and English, officially establishing Pi Alpha Phi on February 1, 1929. The six founders of Pi Alpha Phi were D. Wing Tom, Wing Chan, Elmer Leong, Chack Chan, Tim Jang, and George Lee. All were born in America except Wing Chan, who came from China at an early age. Wing Chan became the fraternity's first president. Because they were banned from joining traditional Greek letter fraternities, Pi Alpha Phi's founding fathers wanted to ensure that Asian-American awareness would be an important part of the fraternity. The fraternity encouraged its members to learn Asian-American culture, heritage, and history and to share this knowledge with others. In its later years, the basic premise of the fraternity remained largely unchanged. The fraternity was open to people of all ethnic backgrounds but retained its Asian-American character.

Expansion

The local fraternity became national with the addition of its ''Beta chapter'' at the

Stony Brook University Stony Brook University (SBU), officially the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is a public university, public research university in Stony Brook, New York, United States, on Long Island. Along with the University at Buffalo, it is on ...

in 1990. This was followed by ''Gamma chapter'' at

University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Davis, California, United States. It is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University ...

that same year. More chapters followed in California and Michigan through 2000. The fraternity's first annual convention was hosted by the ''Epsilon chapter'' in

Arcadia, California Arcadia is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, located about northeast of downtown Los Angeles in the San Gabriel Valley and at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains. It contains a series of adjacent parks consisting of t ...

in 2000. The fraternity continued to charter chapters, expanding into Arizona, North Carolina, and Washington. Pi Alpha Phi was a founding member of the National APIDA Panhellenic Association in 2005. In 2014, Pi Alpha Phi had active ten chapters, one associate chapter, and six colonies. It was headquartered in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

Scandals and dissolution

In July 2020, the National Board of Directors placed a national moratorium on chapter activities in response to "multiple reports of sexual misconduct nationwide." The moratorium was lifted but, a pledge, Phat Nguyen, died and three others were hospitalized after a hazing incident at Michigan State University on November 19, 2021. Nine fraternity members were charged in connection with the death. In June 2023, the family of the deceased student filed a wrongful death suit against the fraternity. On August 1, 2023, Pi Alpha Phi Fraternity announced the closure of all of its collegiate chapters. The fraternity said that its chapters were unsustainable because of the impact of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, declining university enrollment, and financial pressures. Not all chapters agreed with this decision. Some chapters attempted to stay open or tried to start a new organization; although, the former was prohibited by the national fraternity. At the time of its closure, Pi Alpha Phi was the oldest active Asian-American interest fraternity in the United States. The National APIDA Panhellenic Association removed Pi Alpha Phi from its membership roles on October 13, 2023. NAPA said, "Pi Alpha Phi Fraternity, Inc. has contributed to the vibrant Greek life on campuses nationwide and served as a chartering organization of NAPA in 2005. Their dedication to fostering academic excellence, Asian American awareness, brotherhood, leadership, and philanthropy has left a lasting mark on our fraternity and sorority community." Some of the fraternity's materials are archived at the

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

Symbols

The name Pi Alpha Phi was derived from the initials of the Greek phrase meaning "To advance through brotherly ties; the thirst for learning." The colors of Pi Alpha Phi were Berkeley Blue and California Gold. Its mascot was the phoenix. Its symbol was the Brotherhood Links. The five pillars of the fraternity were academic excellence, Asian awareness, brotherhood, leadership, and philanthropy. Its motto is "A tradition of excellence since 1929". The group's nicknames were PAPhi and Pineapples.

Activities

From the mid-1980s to 2002, Pi Alpha Phi participated in the San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade, operating the “Pi Alpha Phi Dragon”. The fraternity awarded the annual Herbert Gee Scholarship, named in honor of an ''Alpha chapter'' founder. The scholarship was funded by alumni and was award to an active member of the fraternity. The fraternity's national philanthropy was the Jade Ribbon Campaign which promoted hepatitis awareness and discussed the health disparity between Asian Americans and white Americans. Chapters also supported charities in their local, such Habitat for Humanity and Christmas charities for children.

Chapters

Following is a list of the former Pi Alpha Phi collegiate chapters.Lurding, Carroll and Becque, Fran. (January 10, 2024)
Pi Alpha Phi
.
Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities
'. Urbana: University of Illinois. Accessed March 19, 2024.

Alumni clubs

The fraternity had alumni clubs in the United States and Asia.

Notable members

* Evan Jackson Leong — filmmaker and director * Delbert Wong — Retired Superior Court judge, the first person of Chinese descent appointed to the judiciary in the continental United States. Appointed as the

special master In the law of the United States, a special master is an official appointed by a judge to ensure judicial orders are followed, or in the alternative, to hear evidence on behalf of the judge and make recommendations to the judge as to the dispositi ...

in the O.J. Simpson murder trial.

Member and chapter misconduct

* On January 21, 2003, the San Jose State chapters of Pi Alpha Phi and the Lambda Phi Epsilon fraternity turned their rivalry into a brawl. The fight involved around 100 people, including Pi Alpha Phi members of the University of California, Santa Cruz who had been recruited to participate. Four people were stabbed in the incident. A member of Lambda Phi Epsilon was killed while trying to stop the fight, and others were seriously injured and were taken to the hospital. * Phat Nguyen, a pledge, died and three others were taken to the hospital after a hazing incident involving the forced consumption of alcohol at the Michigan State University chapter on November 19, 2021. Nine fraternity members were changed in connection with the death. In June 2023, the family of the deceased student filed a wrongful death suit against the fraternity.

References

External links

Official website of Pi Alpha Phi
{{National APIDA Panhellenic Association Asian-American culture in California Fraternities and sororities in the United States Asian-American fraternities and sororities Philanthropic organizations based in the United States Organizations based in California University of California, Berkeley 1929 establishments in California Student organizations established in 1929 Former members of National APIDA Panhellenic Association Defunct fraternities and sororities