Lambda Phi Epsilon
Encyclopedia
Lambda Phi Epsilon is an internationally-recognized
fraternity in the United States and Canada. With a total of 53 chapters, it is the largest Asian-interest fraternity in North America. Lambda Phi Epsilon's goals include servicing the community through various philanthropies, increasing Asian awareness, promoting academic scholarship, and strengthening the Asian American
voice on campus. Lambda Phi Epsilon Fraternity, Inc. being the current largest Asian-interest fraternity, continues to expand to other campuses every year.
, Lambda Phi Epsilon has continued to grow and establish presence on campuses all over the nation. Within a few years, the fraternity had chartered to the University of Texas, Austin (Zeta Chapter), the State University of New York, Buffalo (Nu Chapter), and the University of Michigan
(Xi Chapter). In 1990, the organization was recognized by the North-American Interfraternity Conference
, being the first Asian Interest fraternity to do so. The fraternity has since expanded to all corners of the United States and beyond.
State University of New York, Buffalo (Nu Chapter) was Lambda Phi Epsilon's first chapter to be chartered on the American East Coast. Starting as Delta Gamma Tau, on September 15, 1992, this fraternity merged with Lambda Phi Epsilon (effectively taking on Lambda Phi Epsilon's letters) to unify organizations with identical purposes and to strengthen the Asian-American voice in the campus community.
On December 5, 2004, Lambda Phi Epsilon established a chapter at the University of Toronto
(Alpha Xi Chapter), thereby granting Lambda Phi Epsilon status as an international fraternity.
(NMDP). Because of this, every chapter of Lambda Phi Epsilon hosts several bone marrow drives in conjunction with the Asian American Donor Program, the Cammy Lee Leukemia Foundation, and Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches, to inform, educate, and recruit potential marrow donors for the NMDP. By increasing the number of Asian donors in the national registry, Lambda Phi Epsilon hopes to better the chances of Asian patients finding donors that they are compatible with.
Lambda Phi Epsilon recognized bone marrow drives as the national philanthropy when Evan Chen, a brother from Stanford University
, was diagnosed with leukemia. The fraternity, along with Evan’s friends, organized a joint effort to find a bone marrow match for Evan. What resulted was the largest bone marrow typing drive in the history of the National Marrow Donor Program and AADP (Asian American Donor Program). In a matter of days, over 2000 people were typed. A match was eventually found for Evan, unfortunately by that time the disease had taken its toll on him and he died in 1996. Since then, chapters across the nation hold annual bone marrow drives to help others find matching bone marrow. In particular, the fraternity seeks out "minority donors because they are the hardest to find."
In addition to hosting bone marrow drives on a national level, individual chapters of Lambda Phi Epsilon participate in their own local philanthropies including Habitat for Humanity, AIDS walks, beach clean-ups, adopting highways, and assisting the elderly community. On many occasions the fraternity teams up with other student organizations to help fund raise for various charities.
In Canada where bone marrow drives are not as visible, brothers participate annually in Relay 4 Life, a 12-hour walk or run marathon hosted by the Canadian Cancer Society. In 2007, Lambda Phi Epsilon at the University of Toronto
raised over $1500 in support of funding cancer research. In addition to Relay 4 Life, brothers have participated in the blood drive along with weekly sandwich runs throughout the summer.
Every year, Lambda Phi Epsilon holds an annual convention during Memorial Day
weekend at various locations around the world. Convention is a national event for members to get together for business and pleasure, and is one of the largest Asian American gatherings in the United States. Parties, after-parties, as well as Brotherhood showcases where members from their respective chapters can perform a dance or step are held all weekend long. The winning chapter is awarded a sword called the "Keight." Named after the original eight step team members from the University of California, Santa Cruz
(Kappa Chapter), the "Keight" is a figurative trophy passed down from the previous year's winner. Meetings are held to elect national board members and review current policies, and career development workshops are set up to help current members develop skills used in the professional world. The weekend is closed off with a final banquet.
North-American Interfraternity Conference
The North-American Interfraternity Conference , is an association of collegiate men's fraternities that was formally organized in 1910, although it began on November 27, 1909. The power of the organization rests in a House of Delegates where each member fraternity is represented by a single delegate...
fraternity in the United States and Canada. With a total of 53 chapters, it is the largest Asian-interest fraternity in North America. Lambda Phi Epsilon's goals include servicing the community through various philanthropies, increasing Asian awareness, promoting academic scholarship, and strengthening the Asian American
Asian American
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...
voice on campus. Lambda Phi Epsilon Fraternity, Inc. being the current largest Asian-interest fraternity, continues to expand to other campuses every year.
Founding Fathers
A group of nineteen dedicated men decided to form Lambda Phi Epsilon on February 25, 1981. Noting that Asian fraternities and sororities at the UC campuses were recognized only as service organizations due to their memberships focus on specific Asian groups and to the exclusion of other ethnic groups, the goal of the founders was to transcend this limitation. The founders hoped to set new and higher standards of excellence for all Asian-interest organizations to follow, while feeling a need to offer a fraternity that would be recognized by the IFC and the Greek system. While the original charter focused on Asian Pacific Americans, people from all ethnic backgrounds were welcome to join and support the brotherhood of Lambda Phi Epsilon. Their vision was that the members would eventually become the leaders of their respective communities and bridge the gaps that divided the Asian American community through an affiliation with a common organization. Craig Ishigo and Darryl L. Mu signed the charter as president and vice president, respectively.
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National expansion
Since its founding at the University of California, Los AngelesUniversity of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
, Lambda Phi Epsilon has continued to grow and establish presence on campuses all over the nation. Within a few years, the fraternity had chartered to the University of Texas, Austin (Zeta Chapter), the State University of New York, Buffalo (Nu Chapter), and the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
(Xi Chapter). In 1990, the organization was recognized by the North-American Interfraternity Conference
North-American Interfraternity Conference
The North-American Interfraternity Conference , is an association of collegiate men's fraternities that was formally organized in 1910, although it began on November 27, 1909. The power of the organization rests in a House of Delegates where each member fraternity is represented by a single delegate...
, being the first Asian Interest fraternity to do so. The fraternity has since expanded to all corners of the United States and beyond.
State University of New York, Buffalo (Nu Chapter) was Lambda Phi Epsilon's first chapter to be chartered on the American East Coast. Starting as Delta Gamma Tau, on September 15, 1992, this fraternity merged with Lambda Phi Epsilon (effectively taking on Lambda Phi Epsilon's letters) to unify organizations with identical purposes and to strengthen the Asian-American voice in the campus community.
On December 5, 2004, Lambda Phi Epsilon established a chapter at the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
(Alpha Xi Chapter), thereby granting Lambda Phi Epsilon status as an international fraternity.
Philanthropy
The fraternity's national philanthropy are the bone marrow drives. For a patient living with leukemia or any other blood disorder, the odds of finding an appropriate match are already slim; their best chance of finding a matching donor lies within their own ethnic community. Unfortunately, Asian donors make up just a small fraction of the National Marrow Donor ProgramNational Marrow Donor Program
National Marrow Donor Program® Be The Match is the global leader in providing marrow and umbilical cord blood transplants to patients with leukemia, lymphoma and other diseases. The nonprofit organization matches patients with donors, educates health care professionals and conducts research so more...
(NMDP). Because of this, every chapter of Lambda Phi Epsilon hosts several bone marrow drives in conjunction with the Asian American Donor Program, the Cammy Lee Leukemia Foundation, and Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches, to inform, educate, and recruit potential marrow donors for the NMDP. By increasing the number of Asian donors in the national registry, Lambda Phi Epsilon hopes to better the chances of Asian patients finding donors that they are compatible with.
Lambda Phi Epsilon recognized bone marrow drives as the national philanthropy when Evan Chen, a brother from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, was diagnosed with leukemia. The fraternity, along with Evan’s friends, organized a joint effort to find a bone marrow match for Evan. What resulted was the largest bone marrow typing drive in the history of the National Marrow Donor Program and AADP (Asian American Donor Program). In a matter of days, over 2000 people were typed. A match was eventually found for Evan, unfortunately by that time the disease had taken its toll on him and he died in 1996. Since then, chapters across the nation hold annual bone marrow drives to help others find matching bone marrow. In particular, the fraternity seeks out "minority donors because they are the hardest to find."
In addition to hosting bone marrow drives on a national level, individual chapters of Lambda Phi Epsilon participate in their own local philanthropies including Habitat for Humanity, AIDS walks, beach clean-ups, adopting highways, and assisting the elderly community. On many occasions the fraternity teams up with other student organizations to help fund raise for various charities.
In Canada where bone marrow drives are not as visible, brothers participate annually in Relay 4 Life, a 12-hour walk or run marathon hosted by the Canadian Cancer Society. In 2007, Lambda Phi Epsilon at the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
raised over $1500 in support of funding cancer research. In addition to Relay 4 Life, brothers have participated in the blood drive along with weekly sandwich runs throughout the summer.
Chapters
Lambda Phi Epsilon has a total of 52 chapters in North America, with more than half of its chapters concentrated in California, New York, and Texas. A complete list of Lambda Phi Epsilon's chapters and links to their websites can be found at the link given above.West Coast
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The South
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The Midwest
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East Coast
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National Convention
Memorial Day
Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
weekend at various locations around the world. Convention is a national event for members to get together for business and pleasure, and is one of the largest Asian American gatherings in the United States. Parties, after-parties, as well as Brotherhood showcases where members from their respective chapters can perform a dance or step are held all weekend long. The winning chapter is awarded a sword called the "Keight." Named after the original eight step team members from the University of California, Santa Cruz
University of California, Santa Cruz
The University of California, Santa Cruz, also known as UC Santa Cruz or UCSC, is a public, collegiate university; one of ten campuses in the University of California...
(Kappa Chapter), the "Keight" is a figurative trophy passed down from the previous year's winner. Meetings are held to elect national board members and review current policies, and career development workshops are set up to help current members develop skills used in the professional world. The weekend is closed off with a final banquet.
Notable alumni
- Yul KwonYul KwonYul Kwon is a television host and former government official, lawyer, and management consultant based in Virginia. He first gained national recognition as the winner of the reality TV show Survivor: Cook Islands...
- winner of Survivor: Cook IslandsSurvivor: Cook IslandsSurvivor: Cook Islands is the thirteenth season of the American CBS competitive reality television series Survivor, having premiered on September 14, 2006...
, one of PeoplePeople (magazine)In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
magazine's Sexiest Men for 2006., and deputy chief of the Federal Communications CommissionFederal Communications CommissionThe Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
's Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau