Sigma Omega Psi
ΣΩΨ
Founded1914; 110 years ago (1914)
College of the City of New York, New York, NY
TypeSocial
PublicationThe Shield
Chapters5 at the time of merger
Merged withAlpha Epsilon Pi (1940)

Sigma Omega Psi (ΣΩΨ) was a historically Jewish Fraternity founded in 1914 and which merged into Alpha Epsilon Pi (ΑΕΠ) in 1940.

History

Sigma Omega Psi was founded in 1914 at College of the City of New York.[1] Its purpose was as Greek letter college fraternity for Jewish students and to foster the spirit of true brotherly love and self-sacrifice.[2] Its publication was The Shield.[3]

The fraternity held its Sixteenth Annual Convention at the Park Central Hotel in New York City on December 29 through 31, 1936.[3][4] Its Seventeenth Annual Convention was held in Boston, Massachusetts on December 29 through 31, 1937.

By 1940, only five chapters would be active, and the decision was made to merge into Alpha Epsilon Pi.

At the time of the Union, only the chapters at Worcester Poly, Boston University, Tufts, Lowell, and New York University were active. The first three became Epsilon Deuteron chapter, Zeta Deuteron chapter, and Eta Deuteron chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi, respectively. The chapter at Lowell could not be merged due to National Interfraternity Council requirements[5][6] and the chapter at New York University was merged with Alpha Epsilon Pi's Alpha chapter.[7] Subsequently, the chapters at Syracuse, MIT and CCNY were reactivated by Alpha Epsilon Pi and considered to be revivals of the chapters of Sigma Omega Psi at those schools.[7]

Chapters

More than twenty chapters were founded by 1940 including:[8][7]

Chapter Chartered/Range Institution Location Status Reference
Alpha 1914–1935 College of the City of New York New York City, New York Inactive [9]
Beta 1915–1926 Columbia University New York City, New York Inactive [9]
Gamma 1916–1940 New York University College of Medicine New York City, New York Inactive [9]
Delta 1919–1940 New York University New York City, New York Merged [9][a]
Epsilon 1921–192x ? Syracuse University Syracuse, New York Inactive [9]
Zeta 1919–19xx ? New York University College of Dentistry New York City, New York Inactive [9]
Eta June 23, 1920–1941 Lowell Textile Institute Lowell, Massachusett Inactive [5][6][9][b]
Theta May 3, 1919–1940 Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester, Massachusetts Merged [10][9][c]
Iota 1919–1940 Boston University Boston, Massachusetts Merged [9][d]
Kappa 1928–1931 Northeastern University Boston, Massachusetts Inactive [9]
Lambda 19xx ?–19xx ? New York Law School New York City, New York Inactive [9]
Mu May 1921–1940 Tufts College Medford, Massachusetts Merged [11][12][13][e]
Nu 1921–19xx ? New York State School of Applied Agriculture Farmingdale, New York Inactive [9]
Xi 1922–1935 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, Massachusetts Inactive [9]
Omicron 19xx ?–19xx ? College of Physicians and Surgeons (Columbia University) New York City, New York Inactive [9]
Pi May 26, 1923–19xx ? Harvard University Cambridge, Massachusetts Inactive [14]
Rho 1926–1931 University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, Alabama Inactive [1]
Sigma Unissued ?
Tau September 1926–1933 Temple University Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Inactive [15][9]
Upsilon 192x ?–19xx ? St. John's College New York City, New York Inactive [9]
Phi 1927–c. 1934 Cornell University Ithaca, New York Inactive
  1. ^ Merged with the Alpha chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi.
  2. ^ Chapter became the Pi chapter of Alpha Epsilon fraternity with the expectation of joining AEPi when Lowell received regional accreditation. Instead, it became the Alpha Epsilon chapter of Pi Lambda Phi in 1949 after Lowell Textile's 1948 accreditation.
  3. ^ Chapter was formed from the Six Ten Club, established in 1919. It became the Epsilon Deuteron chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi.
  4. ^ Became the Zeta Deuteron chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi.
  5. ^ Became Eta Deuteron chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi.

Alumni Clubs

Sigma Omega Psi had three alumni clubs[3]

Notable members

References

  1. ^ a b "Our History". Alpha Epsilon Pi. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
  2. ^ Jewish National Organizations in the United States 1928-1929 American Jewish Yearbook, pp. 230. via AJC Archives.
  3. ^ a b c Jewish National Organizations in the United States 1937-1938 American Jewish Yearbook, p. 671. via AJC Archives.
  4. ^ Pickout. Vol. 32. Lowell, Massachusetts: Lowell Textile Institute. 1937. pp. 107, 135 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ a b Pickout. Vol. 36. Lowell, Massachusetts: Lowell Textile Institute. 1941. pp. 72–73 – via Internet Archive.
  6. ^ a b Pickout. Lowell, Massachusetts: Lowell Textile Institute. 1953. p. 111 – via Internet Archive.
  7. ^ a b c Anson, Jack L.; Marchenasi, Robert F., eds. (1991). Baird's Manual of American Fraternities (20th ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Baird's Manual Foundation, Inc. p. VIII -22. ISBN 978-0-9637159-0-6
  8. ^ Pickout. Lowell, Massachusetts: Lowell Textile Institute. 1938. p. 108 – via Internet Archive.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Lurding, Carroll and Becque, Fran. (December 3, 2022) Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities. Urbana: University of Illinois. Accessed December 30, 2022.
  10. ^ The Journal of Worcester Polytechnic Institute July 1919
  11. ^ The Jumbo. Vol. 27. Medford, Massachusetts: Tufts University. Office for Campus Life. 1953. hdl:10427/41687X584.
  12. ^ The Jumbo. Medford, Massachusetts: Tufts University. Office for Campus Life. 1938. hdl:10427/C534G2746 – via Tufts Digital Archive.
  13. ^ The Jumbo Book. Medford, Massachusetts: Tufts University. Office for Campus Life. 1934. hdl:10427/3B591P570.
  14. ^ Sanua, Marianne Rachel (2003). Going Greek : Jewish college fraternities in the United States, 1895-1945. Internet Archive. Detroit : Wayne State University Press. ISBN 978-0-8143-2857-6.
  15. ^ Templar. Vol. 8. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Temple University. 1930. p. 199 – via Temple University Libraries.
  16. ^ New York (State) (1840). "Manual for use of the Legislature of the State of New York". New York Manual for the Use of the Legislature: 470 – via Hathi Trust.
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