Delta Sigma Pi

Delta Sigma Pi
Delta Sigma Pi
ΔΣΠ
Founded	November 7, 1907; 116 years ago; New York University; New York, NY
Type	Professional
Affiliation	PFA
Status	Active
Emphasis	Business
Scope	National
Member badge
Colors	Old gold, Royal purple
Flower	Red Rose
Publication	The DELTASIG
Chapters	305 established collegiate, 218 active collegiate, 48 active alumni
Members	12,000+ collegiate; 300,000+ lifetime
Nickname	Deltasig
Headquarters	330 South Campus Ave.; Oxford, Ohio 45056; United States
Website	Official website

Delta Sigma Pi (ΔΣΠ) (officially the International Fraternity of Delta Sigma Pi, Inc.)^[2] is a coeducational professional business fraternity and one of the largest in the United States. Delta Sigma Pi was founded on November 7, 1907, at the School of Commerce, Accounts and Finance of New York University (NYU) in New York, New York and is currently headquartered in Oxford, Ohio. The Fraternity has 218 active collegiate chapters, 9 startup groups, 48 franchised alumni chapters, and over 300,000 initiated members.^[1]

History

Delta Sigma Pi was established on November 7, 1907 at New York University's School of Commerce, Accounts and Finance. Its founders were:

Alexander F. Makay
H. Albert Tienken
Harold V. Jacobs
Alfred Moysello^[3]

Purpose

Delta Sigma Pi was established to foster the study of business at the university level. Its goals include:

to encourage social activity among business students,
to build relationships with the commercial world,
to promote strong ethical standards, and
to enhance the civic and commercial welfare of the community.^[3]

Expansion

The second chapter was founded at Northwestern School of Commerce. National meetings, called the Grand Chapter Congress, became a regular tradition and to this day the national fraternity meets every other year to conduct business and elect its national leaders.^[4]

After rapid expansion in the early 1920s, the fraternity opened its national headquarters in Chicago, Illinois.^[5] In 1957, the central office moved to Oxford, Ohio adjacent to the campus of Miami University.^[5]^[3]

The biggest change in the history of the Fraternity took place in 1975, as the Board of Directors mandated that chapters were allowed to initiate female business students, to conform with Title IX.

Symbols and traditions

In 1911 the fraternity published its first newsletter, which soon would be named The Deltasig.

The official badge of Delta Sigma Pi is a skull and crossbones, superimposed on a wreath of leaves. The letters Δ, Σ, and Π are inscribed on the skull, set with amethyst eyes, a crown on top highlighted in red lacquer, often enhanced with surrounding pearls.^[3]

The official colors of Delta Sigma Pi are old gold and royal purple.^[3]

The red rose was adopted as the official flower of Deltasig at the first Board of Directors meeting in 1921. It was primarily the gift given to the wives and courted women of Deltasig brothers (which at the time was still all male). One of the founding members, Harold V. Jacobs, suggested a rose as the official fraternity flower because his wife loved roses and it was also her first name (Rose Jacobs). Five years later, in 1926, Jacobs also suggested that the song currently sung at LEAD schools and Grand Chapter Congress events, Rose of Deltasig be adopted as the official song of the fraternity.^[6]

The Central Office

Delta Sigma Pi's national administrative headquarters was established in Chicago, Illinois, in 1924. In the fall of 1956, it moved to 330 South Campus Avenue in Oxford, Ohio (near Cincinnati and adjacent to the Miami University campus). In 1970, the original building nearly doubled in size with the addition of wings on either side of the building. Later in 2010 extensive renovations, including a courtyard featuring engraved bricks, were completed to make the building more functional and accessible. The Executive Director manages day-to-day functions of the Central Office and leads a full-time staff.

Chapters

Collegiate chapters

Since its inception in 1907, Delta Sigma Pi has installed 305 chapters, of which 218 are currently active. In addition to these chapters, Delta Sigma Pi currently has active startup groups at 9 universities.^[7]

The organization is distinctly separate from U.S. social fraternities with similar names, including Delta Sigma Phi and Sigma Pi.^[8]^[9]

Alumni chapters

Delta Sigma Pi has 48 franchised Alumni Chapters on its roll for the 2023-2024 year in the United States, and over 40 more locations worldwide have Brothers with an interest in starting a new Alumni Chapter.^[7]

References

^ ^a ^b "300,000th Initiate Milestone Reached". DeltaSigmaPi.org. Delta Sigma Pi. May 23, 2022. Retrieved July 1, 2022.
^ "Delta Sigma Pi Facts and Terminology". www.deltasigmapi.org.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Anson, Jack L.; Marchenasi, Robert F., eds. (1991) [1879]. Baird's Manual of American Fraternities (20th ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Baird's Manual Foundation, Inc. p. V-14-18. ISBN 978-0963715906.
^ Delta Sigma Pi National Bylaws (34th Edition)
^ ^a ^b James Prescott. "History of Delta Sigma Pi". Delta Sigma Pi Website. Delta Sigma Pi. Archived from the original on 16 January 2015. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
^ Noted by Los Ellis via the official Deltasig website and Central Office archives in Oxford, Ohio.
^ ^a ^b "Chapter Locator". www.deltasigmapi.org.
^ "University of Missouri fraternity closes indefinitely". Associated Press. 21 November 2020. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
^ White, Chris and Bosco, Tom (July 14, 2021). "Fraternity suspended, new measures in place at Ohio University after hazing incident". WCHS ABC 8. Retrieved 23 July 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)