About Us

Chapter History

The Phi Chapter of Alpha Epsilon Pi was first established in 1933 at the University of Massachusetts. The chapter was home to many young men. After losing our charter in the late 1970's, the fraternity was reconstructed in 1982 by our founding fathers: Bob Portnoy, Saul Natansohn, John Handwerger, Mike Dornfield, Gene Lichtman, Steve Laplante, David Falh, Scott Nurenberg and David Wayne. As a newly constructed chapter here at UMASS,  our first house was at 382 North Pleasant Street.  The house treated the brothers well, but In 1996, the fraternity sold the house to Alpha Delta Phi and ran all fraternal activities out of the Sunset Condominiums. In 1998, during the Kappa Deuteron pledge class, past brother master, Teak Basset moved the fraternity to the location of 401 North Pleasant Street. In 2006, another former brother master, Ben Levine, would move the house to its current location of 118 Sunset St.

Today we are one of the largest fraternities and tightest brotherhoods at UMass. In 2000, Jon Feldman started our sober driver program. Each brother participates one weekend night of the semester, devoting their time to taking brothers safely to and from their destination. This program was established to eliminate any drunk driving within our chapter, after a tragic drunk driving accident at UMass. In 2000, 2001, 2003 we took home the silver chapter award and in 2002 we took home the Gold Chapter Award. For the past four years, we have held the highest G.P.A of all fraternities and for the past two years, we have won the intramural wrestling championship. We continue to recruit and initiate new brothers, and our latest pledge class, Alpha Zeta, joined the fraternity in Spring 2008.

National History

In the history of the United States, 1913 was an eventful year. Only a year before, Arizona had been admitted to the Union as the forty-eighth state, completing the continental bounds of the country. Woodrow Wilson was inaugurated President; the Federal Reserve System was established to strengthen the banking system; and the 16th amendment to the Constitution was adopted, providing for the progressive tax on income. The Panama Canal, one of the greatest engineering feats of modern times, was nearing completion and would be in operation in 1914. In that same year, at the School of Commerce of New York University, Alpha Epsilon Pi officially made its appearance in the fraternity world.

There have been rumors that preliminary organization may have taken place as early as 1911. This seems unlikely. However, it is fairly certain that the work of establishing a new fraternity at New York University began in the 1912-1913 academic year. Founder Charles C. Moskowitz, speaking at a banquet in his honor on November 13, 1952, indicated that the winter of 1913 was the time when organizational activity got into high gear. It appears certain, therefore, that by late 1912 or early 1913 the founding of the new fraternity was well under way.

Its Founders were all young men of serious purpose, employed during the day, coming from middle-class homes, who sought to get ahead by obtaining the formal training offered at New York University in the evening sessions. The catalyst for the founding of Alpha Epsilon Pi was the transfer of Charles C. Moskowitz from the College of the City of New York to New York University's School of Commerce.

While enrolling at C.C.N.Y.,Charles Moskowitz, a fine basketball player, was heavily sought after for his athletic skills. When he enrolled at New York University, his reputation had preceded him, and he was immediately rushed and given a bid by one of the fraternities. Which fraternity is not known, and nothing exists to indicate its name. It is known that in 1913 the following fraternities were in existence at the School of Commerce: Alpha Kappa Psi, founded in 1905, and today one of the leading professional commerce fraternities, with a chapter roll of 144 (1977); Delta Sigma Pi, founded in 1907, and today Alpha Kappa Psi's chief rival, with a chapter roll of 132 (1977); Lambda Sigma Phi, a local, founding date unknown; Phi Sigma Pi, a local founded in 1911; Phi Delta, a local, founded in 1912; Phi Sigma Delta, which had placed its Delta chapter at N.Y.U.'s School of Commerce in 1913, and which was later to relocate at the Heights campus; Phi Delta Sigma, founded in 1913.

One of these seven fraternities rushed the young basketball star intensely. However, when Charles Moskowitz asked whether bids could also be extended to his friends, he was immediately told that the bid was for him alone. Brother Moskowitz had a circle of close Jewish friends which met after work for dinner before going to class. Evidently, Founder Moskowitz discussed this with his friends, and they decided that fraternities were good for the students, and since there was no patent on the idea, they would start one of their own. The group had its meals at German rathskellar on Second Avenue, within walking distance of the university. The specialty was frankfurters and sauerkraut, and the price was fifteen cents. The young men talked with the owner who agreed that if six or eight men would eat their regularly every school night, he would give them a private area in the rathskeller. And that is how Alpha Epsilon Pi began.

One of the topics of conversation was "fraternity": its pros and cons. Could this impecunious group of young students, busy with their daytime jobs and nighttime studies, successfully launch a new fraternity when there were already seven well-established groups at the School of Commerce, three of them nationals? They decided to try. Brother Moskowitz is quoted as saying, "Our aim was mutual assistance in our intellectual and social life - to strengthen the democratic character of student life."

When the founding group finally jelled, there were eleven founding members: I.M. Glazer, Herman L. Kraus, Arthur M. Lipkint, Benjamin M. Meyer, Hyman Schulman, Emil J. Lustgarten, Arthur E. Leopold, Charles J. Pintel, Maurice Plager, David K. Schafer and Charles C. Moskowitz. Charles Moskowitz was chosen as the first master.

By common consent, the name Alpha Epsilon Pi had been chosen as best representing the ideals the founders wanted to express. Coincidentally, just four years earlier, a Jewish sorority had formed at Barnard College, a college for women related to Columbia University, and had chosen for itself the name Alpha Epsilon Phi. An even more remarkable coincidence, for coincidence it seems to have been, is that the badges of the two organizations were very similar. In both the three Greek letters are horizontally attached, and the only major difference is that there is a bar through the letters of the women's group. Research has failed to discover any link between the two groups, and it now appears that the young men at New York University who founded Alpha Epsilon Pi were completely unaware of the existence of Alpha Epsilon Phi.

After months of meetings and perfecting the organization, the young group decided it was time to obtain recognition from the university as an official School of Commerce fraternity. To gain recognition, it was decided to address a letter to Dean Joseph French Johnson of the School of Commerce, outlining the aims and ideals of the fledgling fraternity and asking of his consideration and approval. David K. Schafer was the only member who could type, so he, as secretary, was chosen to draft the request and type it, to give it a businesslike appearance. The letter was submitted, probably about early October, after which the waiting period began. As is the case today, the wheels of the decision-makers turned slowly. At last, however, the long-awaited reply came on November 7, 1913. It was in the affirmative. Alpha Epsilon Pi was a recognized fraternity at New York University.