Rho Psi

The Rho Psi Society (ΡΨ) is an honorary Greek letter fraternity. Although founded as a student society, it is no longer active at the collegiate level. The objectives of the Society are to promote and perpetuate friendship among members; to develop congeniality and brotherhood in the fraternal life; and to cultivate the spirit of cooperation and self-sacrifice.

Rho Psi
ΡΨ
素友
pronounced "Soo-You" in English
Founded1916 (1916)
Cornell University
TypeNon-collegiate, Social
AffiliationIndependent
EmphasisChinese culture
ScopeInternational
Member badge
Chapters18 installed ?
Headquarters
US
WebsiteOfficial website

History

Su Yu She, the (Society for Respecting Friends) was founded in 1916 at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York as a general club for male students of Chinese descent, with its Chinese name.[1] The original founders, Chih Ping, L. N. Lau, Y. C. Yang, K. C. Lay, and C. K. Cheng, were all of Chinese origin. The name was changed to Rho Psi Fraternity in 1918.

The Founders of Rho Psi may have sought, but been excluded from the fraternities of the time, but it is more likely that they sought formation of their own group for cultural affinity faced with a very small population of collegians of the same ethnic background. Mirroring society, colleges and universities, housing and dining halls, and Greek Letter organizations were all more insular in Rho Psi's founding era. This common campus culture didn't shift toward a more integrated approach until the ethnic, religious and racial social mixing that occurred with the massive return of more integration-minded GIs after WWII.[2]

Rho Psi was the first club with Greek letters for Asian students in what is now the Ivy League. It was a pioneer, established long before most multicultural or cultural-affinity Greek Letter organizations.[3]

The Alpha chapter, which maintained a house, existed on the Cornell campus until 1931. Rho Psi became national in 1925 with the establishment of another chapter in New York City, and the fraternity gained international status in 1929 with a chapter in Shanghai. It appears in four editions of Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities.[4][5][6][7]

At its 1976 convention in State College, Pennsylvania, Su Yu She adopted the name Rho Psi Society, and at the same time, voted that women would be admitted to membership.

In 2009 Rho Psi was rechartered at the University of Alabama as the Sigma chapter.

There are now a large number of collegiate Asian-American clubs.

Chapters

Chapters of Rho Psi include the following. Chapters in bold are active, chapters in italics are inactive.

Name Chartered Institution Location Status Notes Reference
Alpha 1916–1931 Cornell University Ithaca, NY Dormant [8]
Name 1925–19xx Community-wide ? New York City, NY Dormant
Name 1929–19xx Community-wide ? Shanghai, China Dormant
Iota 1955 Community-wide Washington, D.C. Active
Mu 19xx San Francisco Bay Area San Francisco, CA Active May be based in Palo Alto
Sigma 19xx–19xx, 2009 University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL Active ?

References
  1. Hsu, Francis L. K. The Challenge of the American Dream: The Chinese in the United States. Wadsworth, 1971. ISBN 0-534-00043-6
  2. Note too, that China was an ally of the United States during WWII.
  3. Cornell's Commitment to Diversity: History
  4. William Baird, ed. (1920). Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities (9th ed.). G. Banta Co. p. 704. Retrieved 28 June 2010. baird's manual.
  5. Baird, William Raymond (1923). Baird's manual of American college fraternities (10th ed.). G. Banta Co. p. 687. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
  6. Baird, William Raymond (1927). Baird's manual of American college fraternities (11th ed.). G. Banta Co. p. 509. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
  7. Baird, William Raymond (1957). Baird's manual of American college fraternities (16th ed.). G. Banta Co. p. 305. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
  8. Founded as Su Yu She, a year later it took the name Rho Psi.
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