Alpha Epsilon Pi at Harvard University

What is Alpha Epsilon Pi?

Alpha Epsilon Pi is an international Jewish fraternity with over 100 chapters and colonies across the United States and Canada. It is the only fraternity that is not only historically Jewish, but also actively encourages and develops Jewish values and principles in its brothers. With the goal of developing Jewish leaders in the college generation, men who are committed to bettering themselves, their communities, and society as a whole, Alpha Epsilon Pi is a very strong and well respected fraternity at college campuses across the country.

The fraternity was founded in 1913, with the inception of the Alpha Chapter at NYU, which consisted of a group of Jewish students who had been excluded from other fraternities on the basis of their religious heritage and identity. The purpose of the fraternity remains to this day to provide a social and cultural home-away-from-home for Jewish men, although the fraternity does not discriminate on the basis of religious practice and is open to all who espouse its purpose and values.

Our chapter (which is currently an unchartered colony) was started last year by a group of Harvard students seeking this sort of fraternal experience.

Is Alpha Epsilon Pi just a social fraternity?

No, not at all. Fraternities are not all about partying. While socializing with our brothers is one aspect of brotherhood, and we certainly spend time together hanging out, having dinner, and enjoying the social opportunities that Cambridge and Boston offer, we also participate in community service activities together and have fundraising events to support charity organizations. Last year we organized the first interfraternity basketball tournament at Harvard, and this year we plan on making this event a fundraiser for children's charities in the Boston area.

I thought there weren't any fraternities at Harvard?

Fraternities are not officially recognized by the University at any level. The University does not approve of fraternities and is usually just disinterested as long as fraternities keep themselves relatively invisible around campus. However there is a healthy and growing fraternity presence on campus, including Delta Upsilon, Sigma Chi, and Phi Iota Alpha among others. Additionally, there are a number of sororities active on campus. Thankfully, due to the guarantee of freedom of association in the United States and reinforcement by recent legislation passed in the last session of Congress, the University can not eliminate our right to spend time with the people and organizations we choose to.

Does Alpha Epsilon Pi haze their pledges?

Absolutely not. Alpha Epsilon Pi strives to build brotherhood among pledges and to develop leaders, not mindless followers. We believe brotherhood is built on friendship and kindness, not hurting others or forcing new members to participate in objectionable activities. Chapters caught hazing their new members risk reorganization or losing their charter from the International Fraternity, and individual brothers involved almost always face expulsion from their chapters and the fraternity. But beyond these consequences and the policies of the fraternity, we simply do not beleieve that hazing builds the kind of brotherhood that we seek to build in Alpha Epsilon Pi.