Pi Alpha Phi Fraternity, Inc. (, also Pi Alpha Phi or PAPhi) was an American university-level fraternity. It was founded in 1929 at the University of California, Berkeley. 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 University of California, Berkeley, 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. In 2014, Pi Alpha Phi had active ten chapters, one associate chapter, and six colonies.
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.
On August 1, 2023, Pi Alpha Phi Fraternity announced the closure of all of its collegiate chapters. 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 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.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! style="width:13em;" | Chapter
! style="width:13em;" | Charter date and range
! style="width:20em;" | Institution
! style="width:10em;" | City
! style="width:10em;" | State
! style="width:10em;" | Status
!
|-
| Alpha
| – April 25, 2005; 200x ? – 2013
| University of California, Berkeley
| Berkeley
| California
| Inactive
|
|-
| Beta
| –1992
| Stony Brook University
| Stony Brook
| New York
| Inactive
|
|-
| Gamma
| – August 2012
| University of California, Davis
| Davis
| California
| Inactive
|
|-
| Delta
| – January 23, 2003
| San Jose State University
| San Jose
| California
| Inactive
|
|-
| Epsilon
| –2012
| University of California, Riverside
| Riverside
| California
| Inactive
|
|-
| Eta
| – 2011; 2016–2022
| University of California, Irvine
| Irvine
| California
| Inactive
|
|-
| Theta
| – August 1, 2023
| University of California, San Diego
| La Jolla
| California
| Inactive
|
|-
| Iota
| –2023
| University of Michigan
| Ann Arbor
| Michigan
| Inactive
|
|-
| Kappa
| – August 1, 2023
| University of Arizona
| Tucson
| Arizona
| Inactive
|
|-
|Lambda
|
|
|
|
|Inactive
|
|-
| Mu
| – December 5, 2021
| Michigan State University
| East Lansing
| Michigan
| Inactive
|
|-
| Nu
| –before August 2022
| University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
| Chapel Hill
| North Carolina
| Inactive
|
|-
| Xi
| – August 1, 2023
| University of Washington
| Seattle
| Washington
| Inactive
|
|-
| Omicron
| – March 22, 2023
| University of California, Santa Barbara
| Santa Barbara
| California
| Inactive
|
|-
| Pi
| – August 1, 2023
| University of Iowa
| Iowa City
| Iowa
| Inactive
|
|-
| Rho
| – before August 2022
| University of North Carolina at Charlotte
| Charlotte
| North Carolina
| Inactive
|
|-
| Sigma
| – October 29, 2018
| Northwestern University
| Evanston
| Illinois
| Inactive
|
|-
| Tau
| –before August 2022
| North Carolina State University
| Raleigh
| North Carolina
| Inactive
|
|-
| Upsilon
| – August 1, 2023
| San Francisco State University
| San Francisco
| California
| Inactive
|
|-
| Phi
| –before August 2022
|Drexel University
| Philadelphia
|Pennsylvania
| Inactive
|
|-
| Chi
| – August 1, 2023
| Clemson University
| Clemson
| South Carolina
| Inactive
|
|-
| Psi
| – August 1, 2023
| Iowa State University
| Ames
| Iowa
| Inactive
|
|-
| Alpha Alpha
| –20xx ?; March 2018 – August 1, 2023
| University of Buffalo
| Buffalo
| New York
| Inactive
|
|-
|
|20xx ?– before August 2022
|University of Delaware
|Newark
|New Jersey
|Inactive
|
|-
|
|20xx ?– before August 2022
|University of Maryland, College Park
|College Park
|Maryland
|Inactive
|
|-
|Colony
|
|Arizona State University
|Tempe
|Arizona
|Inactive
|
|-
|Colony
|
|University of South Carolina
|Columbia
|South Carolina
|Inactive
|
|}
Alumni clubs
The fraternity had alumni clubs in the United States and Asia.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!United States
!
!Asia
|-
|
- Iowa
- Los Angeles
- Puerto Rico
- San Jose
- South Carolina
- Washington, D.C.; Maryland; Virginia
|
|
- Guangdong, China
- Hong Kong
- Singapore
- South Korea
- Taiwan
- Thailand
- Vietnam
|}
Notable members
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- 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 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. 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.