Epsilon Tau Pi

Epsilon Tau Pi (ΕΤΠ) Fraternity was founded in 1999 at the University of Dayton in Dayton, Ohio.[1] Its objective is to provide a collegiate fraternity for Eagle Scouts at universities and colleges in the United States.

Epsilon Tau Pi
ΕΤΠ
Epsilon Tau Pi Color Crest
FoundedApril 28, 1999 (1999-04-28)
University of Dayton
TypeService
AffiliationIndependent
EmphasisEagle Scouts
ScopeNational
Motto"May Eagles Forever Soar"
Colors  White   Red   Blue   Black
SymbolThe Bald eagle
Flag
Chapters21 named
8 active, 9 colonies, 4 inactive
FoundersMichael Hammes &
Michael A. Mahon
HeadquartersEpsilon Tau Pi Fraternity, Inc.
P.O. Box 282
Dayton, OH 45409
USA
WebsiteOfficial website

History

Epsilon Tau Pi fraternity was founded by Michael Hammes and Michael A. Mahon, who, with six other students at the University of Dayton, became the founding members of the Alpha chapter. All eight were experienced Eagle Scouts, which became the focus of the new organization. This group of eight formally commenced operation of Alpha chapter on April 28, 1999; This date is celebrated by the fraternity as its national Founder's Day.[2]

In 2001, the Alpha chapter authorized the formation of a 5-member national executive board. The board serves to support and bolster the expansion of the fraternity, as well as to support existing collegiate chapters.

In 2003 the fraternity began to hold biennial convocations, where alumni and collegiate members alike could meet and conduct fraternity business. Officers and alumni delegates to the national executive board are elected at the convocation.

The Fraternity was incorporated in the State of Ohio on January 21, 2006.[3]

The Epsilon Tau Pi Foundation, a charitable and educational 501(c)3 organization, was registered on December 19, 2011, to provide scholarship assistance.[4]

While not a member of the ACHS, Epsilon Tau Pi has aspects of both an honor society and service fraternity, and is characterized by regular projects undertaken for the local communities where chapters are present.

Purpose

The fraternity was formed with several goals in mind. Foremost, the fraternity dedicated itself to upholding the high ideals of Scouting's Eagle rank. The fraternity enables its members to participate in and promote service to others, to Scouting, the community, their university, and the fraternity itself. Members of the fraternity must maintain strict academic standards, in addition to participation in individual, group, and chapter-wide service projects.

Epsilon Tau Pi was formed for five different purposes.

  1. To create a brotherhood of Eagle Scouts.
  2. To serve Scouting and the community.
  3. To uphold the principles of Scouting.
  4. To promote the achievement of the rank of Eagle Scout.
  5. To provide an example to all students of loyalty to the Alma Mater.[5]

Membership

There are five classes of Membership: Candidate, Active, Honorary, Alumni and Advisory (Faculty).

Membership in Epsilon Tau Pi shall be open to all university students who have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout in Scouts BSA or have attained the highest award possible in their respective country’s scouting organization.[6]

Membership is available to students at those institutions where the Fraternity has chapters, or who are attending nearby schools.[6]

The Fraternity requires a Candidacy period of at least six and no more than ten weeks.[6]

National Executive Board

The chairman of the national executive board (NEB) is elected by all members of the fraternity at convocation and serves as the chairman and chief executive officer of the fraternity. The position was established in 2003, approximately two years after the formation of the board.

Past chairmen
Start Date End Date Name chapter (Class)
April 2003 April 2005 Michael Hammes Alpha chapter (Founding Class)
April 2005 April 2007 William Stees Alpha chapter (Delta Class)
April 2007 April 2009 John Meyer Jr. Alpha chapter (Founding Class)
April 2009 April 2011 Benjamin White Alpha chapter (Delta Class)
April 2011 April 2019 Dr. Michael Brazeau Alpha chapter (Lambda Class)
April 2019 Present Jacob Linder Beta chapter (Alpha Class)

Other elected positions on the NEB include Vice-Chairman, Secretary, South Atlantic Regional Director, Midwest Regional Director, and North Central Regional Director. Appointed positions on the NEB include national fraternity education officer (FEO), financial director, marketing director, IT director, social media director, and Scholarship Director/Foundation Chairman. All positions have a term of two years.

Service

Merit Badge Colleges

One of the more prominent activities of the fraternity is the Merit Badge College (MBC) in support of local scouting troops. MBCs are annual events hosted by chapters or colonies of Epsilon Tau Pi, offering scouts the opportunity to earn merit badges not otherwise offered outside of summer camps. Badges such as Chemistry and Programming may be earned with the advantage of college-level facilities, to which scouts would not otherwise have access.

Alpha chapter (Dayton, Ohio)

The MBC at Alpha chapter is an annual event held at the University of Dayton. The program is held in three Saturday morning sessions, and scouts may complete up to three merit badges during the course of the event. In 2008, over 400 scouts attended the event.[7]

Beta chapter (Columbus, Ohio)

The MBC at Beta chapter is an annual event held at Ohio State University.

Iota chapter (Pittsburgh Area, PA)

The MBC at Iota chapter is an annual event held at Robert Morris University. The program is held in two Saturday morning sessions, and scouts may complete up to four merit badges during the course of the event.[8] In 2016, over 200 scouts attended Iota's event.

Chapters & Colonies

The fraternity consists of nine active chapters and six active colonies. Below is a full breakdown of each location's information.

Chapter Colonized Chartered School State Status Charter Range Reference
Alpha N/A April 28, 1999 University of Dayton Dayton, Ohio Active 1999-present [9]
Beta 2002
September 9, 2015		 2003
November 29, 2016		 Ohio State University Columbus, Ohio Active 2002-2003
2015-present		 [10][11]
Gamma April 23, 2005 March 27, 2007 Western Carolina University Cullowhee, North Carolina Active 2005-present
Delta colony December 11, 2005 Indiana State University Terre Haute, Indiana Inactive 2005-2005 [12]
Epsilon colony June 4, 2007 California University of Pennsylvania California, Pennsylvania Inactive 2007-2007 [12]
Zeta October 6, 2008 May 20, 2012 West Virginia University Morgantown, West Virginia Active 2008-present
Eta November 9, 2009 April 16, 2011 Appalachian State University Boone, North Carolina Active 2009-present [13]
Theta November 16, 2010 April 17, 2014 Georgia Southern University Statesboro, Georgia Active 2010-present
Iota September 18, 2012 August 28, 2014 Robert Morris University Pittsburgh Area, Pennsylvania Active 2012-present
Kappa colony December 20, 2012 Augustana College (Illinois) Rock Island, Illinois Inactive 2012-2012 [12]
Lambda colony January 30, 2015 Missouri Western State University St. Joseph, Missouri Inactive 2015-2015 [12]
Mu September 26, 2017 April 6, 2019 East Carolina University Greenville, North Carolina Inactive 2017-2022
Nu colony November 13, 2017 Northwest Missouri State University Maryville, Missouri Active 2017-present [14]
Xi colony February 5, 2018 Kansas State University Manhattan, Kansas Inactive 2018-2022
Omicron March 3, 2018 April 19, 2021 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, North Carolina Active 2018-present
Pi March 7, 2018 July 12, 2021 University of South Carolina Columbia, South Carolina Active 2018-present
Rho colony September 16, 2018 University of Cincinnati Cincinnati, Ohio Active 2018-present
Sigma colony February 18, 2019 Miami University Oxford, Ohio Active 2019-present
Tau colony September 17, 2019 North Carolina State University Raleigh, North Carolina Active 2019-present
Upsilon colony March 1, 2020 Ohio University Athens, Ohio Active 2020-present
Phi May 1, 2020 April 16, 2022 Clemson University Clemson, South Carolina Active 2020-present
Chi colony Aug 23, 2021 Missouri University of Science and Technology Rolla, Missouri Active 2021-present

References
  1. "Eagle Scouts working to create fraternity at OSU". The Lantern (Ohio State University). 2003-05-19. Retrieved 2016-07-03.
  2. Benjamin Kline (2000-02-05). "Eagle Scouts Gather at UD". Dayton Daily News. p. 2B.
  3. Incorporation Certificate and Articles of Incorporation, from the Records office of the Secretary of State of Ohio, accessed 2 Oct 2020.
  4. Noted on CareerOneStop.org, in a listing about the Foundation and its Soaring Eagles scholarship, accessed 2 Oct 2020.
  5. "Epsilon Tau Pi – General Regulations" (PDF). Epsilon Tau Pi. Retrieved July 3, 2016.
  6. Member regulations are more fully explained in the General Regulations, from the Fraternity's Governing Documents page. Accessed 2 Oct 2020.
  7. Matt Beargie (2008-03-07). "Boy Scouts visit UD for annual classes". Flyer News (University of Dayton). Archived from the original on 2011-07-11. Retrieved 2008-05-13.
  8. "Merit Badge College @ RMU :: February 20 & April 9, 2016". meritbadge.rmu.edu. Retrieved 2016-07-03.
  9. Noted performing a service project in the Fairborn Daily News local newspaper, 3 July 2015, accessed 2 Oct 2020.
  10. Beta chapter was originally colonized in 2002, but went inactive in 2003. It returned to campus in 2015.
  11. Noted in the Lantern campus newspaper, 18 May 2003, accessed 2 Oct 2020.
  12. This colony did not earn a charter.
  13. Noted performing a graffiti-clearing project in the Watauga Democrat a local newspaper serving Boone, North Carolina, 3 May 2017, accessed 2 Oct 2020.
  14. Noted in the NW Missouri campus newspaper, the Northwest Missourian 8 May 2020, accessed 2 Oct 2020.
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