Pi Alpha Phi

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Pi Alpha Phi
(ΠΑΦ)
Pi Alpha Phi crest
Founded 1926
UC Berkeley
Type Social

(Asian-American Interest)
Scope National
Motto "A Tradition of Excellence Since 1926"
Colors Berkeley Blue and California Gold
Symbol Brotherhood Links
Chapters 13 Chapters, 2 Associate
Headquarters 2534 Warring Street
Berkeley, California, USA
Homepage Pi Alpha Phi National Website

Pi Alpha Phi (ΠΑΦ also known as PAPhis) is an American university-level fraternity. It was founded in 1929 at the University of California, Berkeley. Pi Alpha Phi is the first Asian-American Interest Fraternity. Since its founding in the early 20th century, the fraternity has expanded with active chapters at campuses throughout the United States.

Contents

[edit] History

Pi Alpha Phi Fraternity was established in 1929 at the University of California, Berkeley by six founding fathers: D. Wing Tom, Wing Chan, Elmer Leong, Chack Chan, Tim Jang, and George Lee. Pi Alpha Phi's six founders formed their own Asian American fraternity in part because traditional Greek fraternities legally discriminated against them. Following the Chinese Exclusion Act, the emergence of the first Chinese-American fraternity served as an organizational and academic haven to the sons of Chinese-American immigrants attending the University of California, Berkeley. Though not the first nationally recognized, Pi Alpha Phi's standards and traditions have paved the template for other young Asian-American fraternities half a century later.

After forming the fraternity, Wing Chan was elected as its first president. D. Wing Tom served as the Vice President and Elmer Leong as the Secretary. They wanted to establish an organization that would be based on the bonds of friendship, mutual experience, academic excellence and brotherhood. The name Pi Alpha Phi was derived from the initials of the Greek phrase meaning "To advance through brotherly ties; the thirst for learning."

[edit] Founders

The Founding Fathers of Pi Alpha Phi hailed primarily from the state of California. Elmer Leong, George Lee, and D. Wing Tom were from the SF Bay Area. Tim Jang, Wing Chan, and his younger brother Chack Chan came from the Central Valley Region of California. All were born in America with the exception of Wing Chan, who came from China at an early age.

The men studied science and engineering, which was considered a better path to employment after graduation since discrimination prevented most Asians from entering into law, medicine or other graduate disciplines.

Their challenges grew as they found out that student lodging was often not rented to those of Asian heritage. It was especially difficult for Tim, Wing and Chack from the Central Valley for whom commuting was not an option. The problem was solved by the goodwill of a sympathetic German woman known as Mother Tusch, who also had been a victim of racism. The seeds of brotherhood were planted in the cabin she rented to Wing, Elmer and D. Wing Tom behind her house near Sather Gate.

The six men proceeded with their college careers, engaging in academic and social events, as well as athletics. Elmer Leong even joined the university track team. They found great comfort and camaraderie in their small group but felt compelled to turn their group into more than a circle of friends, more than a club, more than a social gathering. They decided to form a formal fraternity of brothers that would bind them forever; a fraternity that would break the status quo and seek recognition by the university system.

Following graduation in the early 1930s, the Founding Fathers found life difficult. The country was in the midst of the Great Depression and discrimination against those of Asian heritage for jobs was even more prevalent. Four of the six - Wing Chan, Chack Chan, D. Wing Tom and George Lee - went to southern China to find employment and new lives. Tim and Elmer decided to stay in America to continue their education and start a career despite the difficult circumstances. The four in China prospered, with Wing teaching chemistry at a university in Canton, Chack Chan working in the local aircraft industry, George Lee pursuing a medical degree; and all four found their wives and started their families.

In 1937, with the advent of war in China, all returned home to America with the exception of Wing, who returned after World War II. During wartime, each of the founding fathers made contributions to their country. For example, Tim enlisted in the U.S. Navy Seabees. He served as a construction corpsman for the 132nd Naval Construction Battalion in the Pacific. Chack put his engineering skills to use as a draftsman at the famed Henry J. Kaiser naval shipyard in Richmond, California, where many of the country's great war ships were built.

[edit] Mission Statement

Pi Alpha Phi focuses itself on several core values, which are written into its mission statement. These include:

[edit] Brotherhood

The Fraternity encourages mutual trust and loyalty among its members. The Fraternity creates an extended family that nurtures life-long "friendships" through the shared bonds of tradition, and common experience.

[edit] National Convention
  • First Annual - Arcadia, CA (Embassy Suites) - hosted by Epsilon Chapter, Riverside CA - Convention House Party at Diamond Bar
  • 2001 - San Francisco, CA - hosted by Alpha Chapter, Berkeley, CA - Kamakazi Party at Oakland Convention Center
  • 2002 - Los Angeles, CA (Bonaventure Hotel) hosted by Epsilon Chapter, Riverside, CA - Tsunami Party at Club SOHO, Joint exchange with National Alpha Phi Gamma Sorority (They had their convention in the same location)
  • 2003 - Irvine, CA - hosted by Eta Chapter, Irvine, CA - First ever 4 day convention on Memorial day weekend. Joint exchange and party at Knotts Berry Farm with National alpha Kappa Delta Phi (They had their convention in the same location)
  • 2005 - Koreatown, CA - hosted by Theta Chapter, San Diego, CA
  • 2006 - Las Vegas, NV - hosted by Kappa Chapter, Arizona
  • 2007 - Irvine, CA - hosted by Eta Chapter, Irvine, CA
  • 2008 - Berkeley, CA hosted by Alpha Chapter, Berkeley, CA - Joint Convention with National SOPi. Sponsored by Princeton Review.

[edit] Academic Excellence

The Fraternity creates a studious environment and encourages each of its members to achieve his greatest academic potential. The Fraternity supports all educational endeavors and recognizes exceptional academic achievement.

[edit] Philanthropy

The Fraternity is committed to its responsibility to serve others and encourages participation in activities for the betterment of not only the Asian American community, but the community as a whole. One of its national events is the Jade Ribbon Campaign.

[edit] Jade Ribbon Campaign

Image:Jrc txt.svg
The Jade Ribbon Campaign spreads awareness of the greatest health disparity between Asian Americans and white Americans: liver cancer, 80% of which is caused by chronic hepatitis B infection.

The dragon the fraternity purchased was thought to have a capacity of only 20 people, but when it was put together, it was much longer. Although the dragon may not have been the most elaborate of the parade, it was definitely the longest, as the crowd surely recognized as the dragon snaked through the downtown parade route.

The fraternity members took advantage of our opportunity by having a great turnout: almost 100 fraternity members showed up to participate and share in the bonds of brotherhood. Running a dragon at the parade has always been a great opportunity for the fraternity’s members to work together, build the bonds of brotherhood, and celebrate cultural traditions. This year, they were also able to support a great philanthropic cause: the Jade Ribbon Campaign.

[edit] Leadership

The Fraternity provides opportunities to fulfill important duties within the organization and helps members develop leadership skills in preparation for their future careers and endeavors.

[edit] Asian American Awareness

The Fraternity believes in learning Asian American culture, heritage and history. The Fraternity encourages its members to pass on this knowledge to others.

[edit] Cross Cultural Acceptance

When Pi Alpha Phi was founded in the 1920s, traditional Greek fraternities along with the rest of the nation, legally discriminated against men of color. Since they were banned from joining a traditional Greek fraternity, Pi Alpha Phi's Founding Fathers wanted to ensure that Asian American Awareness would forever be an important part of the Fraternity.

Today, the basic premise of the fraternity remains largely unchanged. Although the fraternity is open to people of all ethnic backgrounds it still retains its Asian American character. With emphasis on brotherhood, the fraternity works to create lifelong bonds that extend far beyond the university setting. The basic goals of brotherhood attained through shared experience, friendship and academics remain unaltered. Although the organization has evolved from generation to generation, the vision of Pi Alpha Phi and its members is the same today as it was for six Berkeley men in 1929.

[edit] Chinese Historical Society of Southern California

Established in 1975, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing together people with a common interest in the history of Chinese and Chinese-Americans in Southern California. Society Conducts research, collects materials and artifacts and disseminates information. Pi Alpha Phi Alumnus are mentioned quite a few times in this book. Refer to Notable Alumni section.

[edit] San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade

From the mid 1980’s to the early 2000’s, Pi Alpha Phi was a mainstay in the parade, operating what had affectionately become known as the “Pi Alpha Phi Dragon”. It was an event that truly exemplified the close bonds of brotherhood among the chapters of the fraternity: an opportunity for fraternity members all over to come together, have fun, and celebrate a cultural tradition.

Since 2002, due to several factors including the retiring of our dragon as well as criteria changes for participating organizations, the fraternity has not participated in the parade.

Their efforts were rewarded when the parade committee graciously extended a parade invitation to Pi Alpha Phi and its partner the Jade Ribbon Campaign to operate a Jade Ribbon Dragon.


[edit] Chinese New Year Parade, 2000, 2002 and 2006

http://youtube.com/watch?v=uAwhlTLlAZQ


[edit] Chinese New Year Parade, 2007

[edit] Jade Ribbon Campaign

The Jade Ribbon Campaign spreads awareness of the greatest health disparity between Asian Americans and white Americans: liver cancer, 80% of which is caused by chronic hepatitis B infection.

The dragon the fraternity purchased was thought to have a capacity of only 20 people, but when it was put together, it was much longer. Although the dragon may not have been the most elaborate of the parade, it was definitely the longest, as the crowd surely recognized as the dragon snaked through the downtown parade route.

The fraternity members took advantage of our opportunity by having a great turnout: almost 100 fraternity members showed up to participate and share in the bonds of brotherhood. Running a dragon at the parade has always been a great opportunity for the fraternity’s members to work together, build the bonds of brotherhood, and celebrate cultural traditions. This year, they were also able to support a great philanthropic cause: the Jade Ribbon Campaign.

http://medstaging.stanford.edu/liver/

[edit] Chapters

[edit] Associate Chapters

[edit] Notable Alumni

Today Pi Alpha Phi's Alumni Association consists of one of the largest networks of alumni spanning back from the mid 1920s. The following are some notable alumni:

  • Johnson Chao — Chief Executive Officer of Takira Inc.
  • Thomas Chinn — former Sacramento City Councilman
  • Gilbert Choy — leading China economist and Director at Dresdner Kleinwort Benson
  • Edwin M. Epstein — Professor Emeritus at UC Berkeley, Haas School of Business
  • Edward Gee — first licensed Chinese-American real estate agent in San Francisco, CA
  • Dr. Timothy S. Gee — One of the country’s leaders in the field of cancer research
  • Professor Bill Hing — Professor of Asian American Studies and the School of Law UC Davis
  • George Kan — Vice President of Hewlett-Packard
  • Dr. Frank Y. Lee — served on the 1984 U.S. Olympic Committee
  • Wing Lew— Vice President of St. Joseph Lead and Mineral Company
  • Mike Lee, Esq. — President of the San Francisco Bar Association former attorney of the Barry Bonds single-season Major League record 73rd Home Run Baseball Trial.
  • Evan Leong — filmmaker, "Forging a Feature: The Journey of BLT", “Better Luck Tomorrow", "Finishing the Game: The Search for a New Bruce Lee",The Fast and "the Furious: Tokyo Drift"
  • Dr. Allen Lim Ph.D — Air Force Engineer of the Year
  • Dr. Wing Mar — UC Berekeley 1949 — retired family physician, founding member of the Chinese Historical Society of Southern California. Published Portraits of Pride Book.
  • Delbert E. Wong — retired Superior Court Judge, World War II veteran First person of Chinese descent to be appointed to the judiciary in the continental United States. Appointed as the Special Master in the O.J. Simpson murder trial.
  • George Q. Woo — Executive Secretary of the Chinese Six Companies or The Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association
  • Sammy Davis, Jr. — made an honorary brother, renown American entertainer and civil rights activist

Pi Alpha Phi alumni are influential in the entertainment industry. Members such as Brian Gee, Tien Truong, Edward Labao, and Wilson Wu have worked on such feature films as E.T., Toy Story, Terminator 2, Jurassic Park, Star Wars: Episode I and II, A.I.: Artificial Intelligence, Space Jam, X-Men, Shrek, and the Hulk.

[edit] Controversy

[edit] San José State University

In January 2003, Lambda Phi Epsilon member and junior at SJSU, Alam Kim, was killed in a fight between members of Lambda Phi Epsilon and Pi Alpha Phi. Alam Kim was an alumnus of Lowell High School in San Francisco, California, where he commanded the Lowell Boys Drill Team. Friends say Alam was trying to stop the fight between the two fraternities before he was killed by getting stabbed through his heart. Although a homicide suspect has not been singled out, a $1 million warrant was issued for Long Duy Tran, a 20-year-old San Jose man who is considered a major suspect in the incident.[1][2]

[edit] External links

[edit] Websites

[edit] News Articles