Founding: 1868

The Six Founders of Pi Kappa Alpha

The Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity was founded at the University of Virginia on March 1, 1868. At the time, the University of Virginia was the fifth largest school in the United States, and was considered the first truly American state university, because it was the first to be established totally free from religious control. It all started in Room 47 West Range when Frederick Southgate Taylor turned to Littleton Waller Tazewell, his cousin and roommate, for help in starting a new fraternity. Also present were James Benjamin Sclater, Jr., a schoolmate of Tazewell, and Sclater's roommate, Robertson Howard. Those four men voted to add a fifth to their group and chose Julian Edward Wood. In addition, William Alexander, probably a friend of Sclater, was proposed for membership and admitted as a founder.

Our Preamble

The essence of the Founders' vision for Pi Kappa Alpha can be found in its Preamble. A committee was first suggested by Brother William Alexander "to draw up a statement of the origin and the organization of the Fraternity." The committee was composed of brothers Robertson Howard and Littleton Waller Tazewell.

The resulting statement is now referred to as the Preamble.

"For the establishment of friendship on a firmer and more lasting basis; for the promotion of brotherly love and kind feeling; for the mutual benefit and advancement of the interests of those with whom we sympathize and deem worthy of our regard; We have resolved to form a fraternity, believing that, thus we can most successfully accomplish our object."

Junior Founders

Before the end of Spring 1868, the brothers had decided that they wanted more than a Virginia society; they wanted to become a national fraternity. The following 21 years would prove to be some of the most troublesome times, nearly shattering the dreams of these young men. With universities making it nearly impossible for fraternities to exist by placing bans on the presence of secret societies, the Fraternity was still able to expand.

The Hampden-Sydney Convention brought the likes of Theron Hall Rice, a transfer to Virginia from Southwestern, who represented Alpha; Howard Bell Arbuckle, a recent graduate and then a teaching fellow at Hampden-Sydney, who represented Iota; and John Shaw Foster, a delegate from Theta Chapter at Southwestern (now Rhodes College). Lambda at the Citadel was to have been represented by Robert Adger Smythe, but a telegram from Charleston explained, "no holiday given us. Impossible to come. Act for us in everything." This convention is of major importance, as it is considered the rebirth of the Fraternity. Together, Theron Hall Rice, Howard Bell Arbuckle, Robert Adger Smythe, and John Shaw Foster reorganized and energized the Fraternity, and thus came to be known as the Junior Founders.

Alpha Omicron History

The Old Pike House at SU, circa 1950

Pi Kappa Alpha began at Southwestern with the initiation of Claudius Mayo Singleton, Merle Thomas Waggoner, Samuel Austin Grogan, Omer Ogden Mickle, James Marvin McGuire, Glenn Dee Chapman, and Adrian Lee Voight on November 12, 1910. Together, they held the first local chapter meeting on January 6, 1911. By 1933, Alpha Omicron had only seven active members. Toward the end of that same year, the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity ceased to exist at Southwestern University.

Some time later, Kenneth Bass, with the help of faculty and other students, inaugurated a local fraternity called Pi Chi. Pi Chi desired to become part of a greater national fraternity and on June 2nd, 1945, fifty men met in Room 9 of the old Mood Hall to discuss that possibility. On January 16th, 1948, the Beta Mu chapter from the University of Texas and Beta Zeta from Southern Methodist University gave rebirth to Alpha Omicron, the Mother Chapter of Texas. Since that time, Alpha Omicron has consistently been an outstanding chapter, winning six Smythe Awards (1966, 1986, 1988-90, 1992) and Southwestern University Organization of the Year in 2007, the first Greek organization to do so.

Alpha Omicron Today

2009-2010 Composite

Today the Alpha Omicron Chapter is 47 men strong. Our active membership includes multiple Political Science, Business, Economics, History, and International Studies majors as well as majors in Religion, Classics, Psychology, Computer Science, Physics, and Accounting. Our brothers are active in over 17 different organizations on campus, from Student Congress and Student Foundation to the Financial Analyst Program and Operation Achievement, in many cases holding officer-level leadership positions in those organizations. The current Student Body President and Vice-President, Honor Code Council President and Vice-President, Student Foundation Vice-Chair and Planning Chair, and the captains of the Track and Lacrosse teams are Pikes. In addition, members of our chapter participate on multiple varsity level teams, including soccer, lacrosse, track and field, cross country, tennis, baseball and basketball.

Alpha Omicron Alumni

Alumni and Active Brothers at Founder's Day 2011

The alumni of Alpha Omicron Chapter are remarkable not only for their individual accomplishments but also for their involvement and level of support for the chapter and the university as a whole. The Alpha Omicron Alumni Association (AOAA) recently completed funding of an endowed scholarship for the active chapter, raising over $100,000 in celebration of our Centennial. The AOAA also acts as an advisory board for the Alpha Omicron Chapter, providing guidance not only with the running of the chapter but also with the personal lives of the individual members. Through the Alumni Big Brother program, successful alumni brothers are paired with active brothers sharing similar interests to provide professional and personal guidance at Southwestern and in the post-graduate world. Five alumni brothers work in various capacities for Southwestern—Brother Mike Rossman (Director of Admission), Brother James Gaeta (Director of Financial Aid), Brother Daniel Webb (Asst. Director of Alumni Relations), Brother Bill Bowman (Asst. Mens Lacrosse Coach) and Brother Bob Snyder (Political Science Professor).