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Beta Theta Pi

 
Wikipedia: Beta Theta Pi
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Beta Theta Pi Fraternity

ΒΘΠ
Motto: ______και______
Nickname: Beta
BetaCoat.jpg

The Coat of Arms
Founded: August 8, 1839 at

Miami University, (Oxford, Ohio) United States
Founders
  • John Reily Knox, 1839
  • Samuel Taylor Marshall, 1840
  • David Linton, 1839
  • James George Smith, 1840
  • Charles Henry Hardin, 1841
  • John Holt Duncan, 1840
  • Michael Clarkson Ryan, 1839
  • Thomas Boston Gordon, 1840
Members 183,769 Initiates[1]

5,911 Collegiate[1]
Scope  United States
 Canada
Official Colors: Delicate shades of Pink and Blue.            
Official Flowers: Roses of the "June" or "Queen of the Prairie" variety
Beta Theta Pi Fraternity Website

Beta Theta Pi (ΒΘΠ) is a social collegiate fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, USA, where it is part of the Miami Triad which includes Phi Delta Theta and Sigma Chi. Beta, as it is nicknamed, was the first college fraternity to be founded west of the Allegheny Mountains, and it has 129 active chapters and colonies in the United States and Canada. 183,772 members have been initiated worldwide, with 125,944 of those living.[1] Beta Theta Pi currently has more than 5,000 undergraduate members.[1] Beta's Administrative Office is located at 5134 Bonham Road, Oxford, Ohio. In 2006, the driveway up to the administrative office was renamed "Lugar-Bates Drive" in appreciation for the work that Senator Richard Lugar Denison '54 and Bert Bates Missouri '56 performed in the $20 million "Upon These Principles" capital campaign.

Contents

Founders

“ At nine o'clock on the evening of the eighth day of the eighth month of the year 1839, eight earnest young men, all students at Miami University, held the first meeting of Beta Theta Pi in the Hall of the Union Literary Society, an upper room in the old college building known as "Old Main."

The eight founders in the order in which their names appear in the minutes were:

"of ever honored memory"

 ”

— The "Founders' Paragraph"

Purpose

The purpose of Beta Theta Pi was laid out publicly in 1879, when Beta Theta Pi became the first college fraternity to publish its constitution. The Fraternity continues to guard certain secrets which are reserved for its members; however, it offers wide knowledge of the objects and aspirations of Beta Theta Pi. The Code of Beta Theta Pi lays out the objects of the Fraternity as follows:

“ It shall be constituted as hereinafter provided and shall have for its objects, the promotion of the moral and social culture of its members, the establishment of confidence and friendly relations among the universities and colleges of the United States and Canada, in securing unity of action and sympathy in matters of common interest among them, and the building up of a fraternity that recognizes mutual assistance in the honorable labors and aspirations of life, devotion to the cultivation of the intellect, unsullied friendship, and unfaltering fidelity as objects worthy of the highest aim and purpose of associated effort. ”

-The Code of Beta Theta Pi, Article 1, Section 2

“ Again, the Beta is distinguishable and distinguished from all other kinds of fraternity men whatsoever by just a little warmer and stronger, just a little tenderer and more enduring fraternity feeling than any of them can attain to. For it was always so. I do not in the least know how it happened, nor why it persisted after it happened, but a long time ago there came into Beta Theta Pi a fraternity spirit that was, and is, and apparently will continue to be, unique. We know it, who are inside, and they see and record it who are outside the Beta pale. Whether young or old, in college or out, from the small school or the great university, we are conscious of a heritage of genuine fraternalism that has not been vouchsafed in like measure -- I say it deliberately -- to any other of the great college fraternities. And we cannot doubt that in this, as in other respects, our 'future will copy fair our past, and that in the world of fifty years from now, as in that of years ago, as in that that lies around us today — the first mark of a Beta will be his Beta Spirit. ”

-Willis O. Robb, Ohio Wesleyan 1879

Famous Betas

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Academia[1]

Thomas A. Bartlett Willamette 1951 Rhodes Scholar; Chancellor, Univ. of Alabama System
Stanley Coulter Hanover 1870 Dean, Purdue University
Andrew Dousa Hepburn Washington & Jefferson 1852 President, Miami University
Alfred Hume Vanderbilt [2] Chancellor, University of Mississippi
Deane Waldo Malott Kansas 1921 Chancellor, University of Kansas; President, Cornell University
Franklin David Murphy Kansas 1936 Chancellor, University of Kansas; Chancellor, UCLA
Russell E. Palmer Michigan State 1956 Dean, Wharton School of Business
James M. Sellers Chicago 1917 President, Wentworth Military Academy
Frank Hugh Sparks DePauw 1936 President, Wabash College
David Stanton Tappan Miami University 1864 President, Miami University
Byron K. Trippett Wabash 1932 President, Wabash College
Michael J. Deegan "Rhode Island 2004" United States Army Ranger Fredrick W. Ness Dickinson 1933 President, Fresno State
David T. McLaughlin Dartmouth 1954 President, Dartmouth College
John P. Crecine Carnegie Mellon 1961 President, Georgia Tech
David Alexander Wallace Miami University 1846 President, Muskingum and Monmouth Colleges
Samuel Weese West Virginia 1957 President, American College
Steven Sample Illinois 1958 President, University of Southern California
Thomas Litzenburg Washington & Lee 1957 President, Salem College

Community Organizations[1]

Government and politics[1]

Vice President Schuyler Colfax
Schuyler Colfax DePauw 1844 U.S. Vice President
Joe Allbaugh Oklahoma State 1974 Former Director of FEMA
Albert Beach Kansas 1905 Mayor of Kansas City, MO
William Borah Kansas 1884 Senator from Idaho and Chairman of Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Joseph W. Byrns, Sr. Vanderbilt 1890 former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
William S. Cowherd Missouri 1881 former Democratic mayor of Kansas City, Missouri in 1892-1893 and Congressman from Missouri in 1897-1905
William B. Cravens Missouri 1893 former U.S. Representative from Missouri
Thomas T. Crittenden, Jr. Missouri 1882 former mayor of Kansas City, Missouri from 1908-1909
Donald Dawson Missouri 1932 former aide to President Truman, Curator of the Truman Presidential Library
Robert Docking Kansas 1946 Governor of Kansas
Thomas Docking Kansas 1976 Lt. Governor of Kansas
Ozro J. Dodds Miami University 1861 US House of Representatives 1872-74
William O. Douglas Whitman 1920 United States Supreme Court Justice
Robert Ellsworth Kansas 1946 US House of Representatives, Nixon Campaign Director, Deputy Secretary of Defense, Advisor to President Nixon, and Representative to NATO
W. Mark Felt Idaho 1935 Exposed the Nixon administrations' corruption as "Deep Throat"
David R. Francis Washington, St. Louis 1870 Mayor of St. Louis, Governor of Missouri, Secretary of the Interior, Ambassador to Russia, President of Louisiana Purchase Exposition
Richard Gephardt Northwestern 1962 Former United States House Minority Leader
John Brown Gordon Georgia 1854 Major General in CSA, U.S. Senator, and Governor of Georgia
Peter B. Halbin Ohio Wesleyan 1953 Social worker, newspaper columnist and Cleveland politician
H. R. Haldeman UCLA 1948 President Nixon’s Chief of Staff
Michael Harcourt British Columbia 1963 Premier of British Columbia
Charles Henry Hardin Miami (OH) 1841 Former Governor of Missouri
Mark O. Hatfield Willamette 1943 Former United States Senator and Governor of Oregon
Bob Packwood Willamette 1954 Former United States Senator
David Karnes Nebraska 1971 Former United States Senator
James P. Kem Missouri 1910 United States Senate from Missouri, 1947 to 1953
Peter D. Kinder Missouri 1976 Lt. Governor of Missouri
Stephen N. Limbaugh, Sr. Missouri 1951 U.S. Federal District Court Judge and former president of the Missouri Bar Association
Horace Lurton Cumberland 1867 United States Supreme Court Justice
Richard Lugar Denison 1954 United States Senator
Ray Mabus Mississippi 1969 Former Governor of Mississippi 1988-92; Secretary of the Navy, 2009 - Present
James G. Martin Davidson 1957 House of Representatives and Governor of North Carolina
Arch A. Moore, Jr. West Virginia 1951 Former Governor of West Virginia
Oliver P. Morton Miami 1847 Civil War Governor of Indiana, and instigator of the DePauw, Indiana and Wabash Chapters
Bill Nelson Florida 1964,Yale 1965 former Representative, currently United States Senator
Don Nickles Oklahoma State 1971 Former United States Senator
Guy B. Park Missouri 1896 governor of Missouri
William Perry Stanford 1949 Former Secretary of Defense
David Peterson Western Ontario 1966 Premier of Ontario
Bill Phelps Missouri 1956 attorney and US Representatives Missouri
Thomas L. Rubey Missouri 1885 U.S. Representative from Missouri
Kimbrough Stone Missouri 1895 judge of the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit
John J. Rhodes Kansas State 1938 Former House Minority Leader
Charlie Rose Davidson 1961 Former Representative
Angelo Scott Kansas 1877 Founder of Oklahoma City, OK
Charles Scott Kansas 1881 Regent, Kansas State Senator, and Member of Congress
Frank E. Smith Mississippi Former Mississippi Congressman
Bertrand Snell Amherst 1984 Former minority leader, U.S. House of Representatives
Zack Space Kenyon 1983 Representative from Ohio
Mike Synar Oklahoma 1972 Former Representative
John Turner British Columbia 1952 Former Prime Minister of Canada
Willis Van Devanter DePauw 1881 United States Supreme Court Justice
John Warner Washington & Lee 1950 United States Senator
Kenneth S. Wherry Nebraska 1914 Former United States Senator and Minority Leader
Durbin Ward Miami University 1843 Civil War General and United States Attorney
Jamie Whitten Mississippi Former Mississippi Congressman
Wendell Willkie Indiana 1916 1940 Republican Party Nominee for President
H.R. Haldeman, UCLA
Senator Richard Lugar, Denison

Arts, entertainment, and media[1]

William Anderson Whitman 1951 aka. Adam West actor, Batman
James Arness Beloit 1946 aka. Marshall Matt Dillon actor, Gunsmoke
James Batton Davidson 1957 Former President, Knight Ridder Newspapers
George Bellows Ohio State 1905 Artist
Thom Brennaman Ohio 1986 Sports Broadcaster
Phil Brown Stanford 1937 aka. Uncle Owen actor, Star Wars
Percy Jewett Burrell Boston 1897 Dramatist and Playwright
Jay Chandrasekhar Colgate 1990 Actor/director, Super Troopers, Beerfest, Arrested Development
Conor Devitt University of Western Ontario Actor/original O'Doyle from Billy Madison
Neil Everett Willamette 1984 ESPN Anchor
Howard Fineman Colgate 1970 Journalist; Senior Editor and Chief Political Corresponedent, Newsweek
George Helgesen Fitch Knox College 1897 Author and Journalist
Avery Friedman University of Louisville Legal Correspondent, CNN Saturday
Chet Forte Columbia 1957 Former TV Director ABC Monday Night Football
Cary Guffey Florida Actor, "Close Encounters of the Third Kind"
Kevin Heffernan (comedian) Colgate Actor, Super Troopers
David Hirshey Dickinson 1971 Vice President and Executive Editor at HarperCollins publishers
Kermit Hunter Ohio 1931 Author, Encyclopædia Britannica
Jeffrey Jones Lawrence 1968 Actor, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Amadeus
Richard Karn Washington 1978 Actor, Home Improvement
Ken Kesey Oregon 1957 Author, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Steve Lemme Colgate Actor, Super Troopers
Thomas Franklin Fairfax Millard University of Missouri 1888 War Correspondent, The New York Times
George Peppard Purdue 1952 Actor, Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Carpetbaggers, The A-Team
Robert Reed Northwestern 1954 Actor, The Brady Bunch
Doug Russell Wisconsin-Oshkosh 1995 Talk show host, Sporting News Radio
David Samuel MIT 1994 Founder and president of Grouper Networks
Eric Slovin Wesleyan 1989 Comedian and Writer, Slovin & Allen, Saturday Night Live
Stephen Sondheim Williams 1950 Composer and Lyricist, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Paul Soter Colgate Actor, Super Troopers
Erik Stolhanske Colgate Actor, Super Troopers
Elias Soriano Florida Atlantic 1999 Musician, Nonpoint[1]
Andrew E. Spey Washington & Lee University 2003 Satire/humorist writer and radio personality
Brian J. White Dartmouth Actor, Stomp the Yard
George Bellows, Ohio State

Sports[1]

Brian G Job Stanford Olympics Medalist in Swimming (Late 60's)
Frankie Baumholtz Ohio 1941 Professional basketball and Major League baseball player
Earl "Red" Blaik Miami University 1918 Head football coach, Army
Matt Borland GMI-EMI 1994 NASCAR Crew Chief for Ryan Newman, Dale Jarrett
Mike Brown Dartmouth 1957 President & GM, Cincinnati Bengals
Guy Chamberlin Nebraska 1916 College and Pro Football Hall of Famer
Thomas Hansen Washington 1976 Current Pac-10 Conference Commissioner
Peter Cipollone California 1994 Olympic Gold Medalist, Rowing, 2004
Eddie Collins Columbia 1907 Baseball Hall of Famer
Donald D. Coryell Washington 1947 Retired San Diego Chargers Coach
DeLoss Dodds Kansas State 1959 Athletic Director of The University of Texas at Austin
Bobby Douglass Kansas 1969 Quarterback, Chicago Bears
Gene L. (Red) Estes Oregon 1959 Head Track & Field Coach, Fresno State
Max Falkenstien Kansas 1947 Legendary Kansas Jayhawks Radio Personality
Jay Fiedler Dartmouth 1994 Football
Dow Finsterwald Ohio 1952 Professional Golfer
Ken Forsch Oregon State 1969 Baseball
Gail Goodrich UCLA 1965 Basketball
Dan Guerrero UCLA 1974 UCLA Athletic Director
William Koch MIT 1962 Skipper and Champion America’s Cup
Cawood Ledford Centre College Legendary University of Kentucky Basketball Commentator
Jerry Lucas Ohio State 1962 Basketball
Leland (Larry) MacPhail Beloit 1910 Brooklyn Dodgers Owner/GM; Hall of Fame/Introduced night games
Steve Marino UVA 2002 Professional Golfer
Scott McCarron UCLA 1989 Professional Golfer
Kurtis Meyer Carnegie Mellon 2009 Football
David Edward "Chip" Reese Dartmouth Professional Poker Player
Jamey Rootes Clemson 1988 Former GM Columbus Crew Major League Soccer and current Senior Vice President Sales & Marketing for Houston Texans
Edward P. Roski Southern California 1968 Owner Los Angeles Kings Hockey Team/Realtor
Mike Schmidt Ohio 1971 Baseball Hall of Famer
Bill Stoneman Idaho 1966 G.M., Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, 1999-2007. MLB Baseball Player.
Eran Horodniceanu George Washington 1998 George Washington Women's Basketball Coach
John T. Smith Oklahoma State 1988 2 Time gold medal winner in Freestyle wrestling
Stan Smith Southern California 1969 Professional Tennis
Brett Milke Traun 2008 SteelSharks Traun, Austria , Football
Bill Veeck Kenyon 1936 Major League Baseball franchise owner
Rick Volk Michigan 1967 Miami Dolphins
John Wooden Purdue 1932 Legendary UCLA Basketball Coach
Brian White Dartmouth 1995 New England Patriots
John Avery Hollis Greer University of Nevada Las Vegas 2000 UNLV Hall of Famer

Military[1]

Jerry M. Blesch Centre 1960 / US Naval Academy 1962 Captain, US Navy (Ret), Surface Warfare Officer, Commanding Officer - frigate USS Richard L. Page (FFG 5), Commanding Officer - destroyer tender USS Puget Sound (AD 38), Commodore - Destroyer Squadron 25 (COMDESRON 25), Commanding Officer - battleship USS Wisconsin
(BB 64)
John Coburn Wabash 1846 Civil War General and founder of the Wabash College Chapter
John Brown Gordon Georgia 1854 Major General in CSA, U.S. Senator, and Governor of Georgia
Terrence C. Graves Miami 1967 2nd Lieutenant, U.S. Marine Corps, infantry officer, Medal of Honor recipient (posthumous) during Vietnam War
James Rogers McConnell Virginia 1910 French Croix de guerre recipient during World War I; Sergeant, Lafayette Escadrille, one of the first Americans to die in the War.
Thomas McGuire Georgia Tech 1944 Major, US Army Air Forces, P-38 Lightning Fighter Pilot and World War II Ace, Medal of Honor recipient, namesake of present day
McGuire Air Force Base, New Jersey
Everett P. Pope[3] Bowdoin 1941 Major, U.S. Marine Corps, Medal of Honor recipient during World War II


Business[1]

John Edward Anderson UCLA 1940 Founder of Topa Equities, Ltd., namesake of UCLA Anderson School of Management
Bill Bowerman Oregon 1933 Founder of Nike, Inc.
Hank Barnette West Virginia 1956 CEO of Bethlehem Steele
Donald Bren Washington 1955 Billionaire, Owner of The Irvine Company
Chris DeWolfe Washington 1988 CEO of Myspace.com
Arthur Collins Miami University 1969 CEO of Medtronic 2002-2008
Justin Dart Northwestern 1929 Founder of Dart Industries
William C Glaub Knox College 1971 Chairmen and CEO Chrysler Canada
Joel Hyatt Dartmouth 1972 Founder Hyatt Legal Services
Donald Peterson Washington 1946 Former CEO Ford Motor Company
Dan Irwin Ohio State University 1983 Part Owner Buffalo Bills
Samuel Laws Miami University 1848 Inventor of the ticker tape machine
Kenneth Lay Missouri 1967 Former chairman and CEO of Enron
R. Conrad Leslie Miami University 1949 World renowned crop analyst
Cruse Watson Moss Ohio University 1948 Former Executive Vice President of Kaiser-Jeep, Former Vice President of American Motors
J. C. Nichols Kansas 1902 Real Estate
George Nolen Virginia Polytech '78 CEO of Siemens
Bruce A. Nordstrom Washington 1955 Former chairman and CEO of Nordstrom
Blake W. Nordstrom Washington 1982 Current Chairman and CEO of Nordstrom
Everett W. Nordstrom Washington 1923 Former chairman and CEO of Nordstrom
John Opel Westminster 1948 Former President of IBM
Sam Palmisano Johns Hopkins '73 CEO of IBM
John H. Patterson Miami University 1867 Founder National Cash Register
Marvin Pierce Miami University 1916 President McCall Corporation and father of Barbara Bush
Mitchell P Rales Miami University 1978 Billionaire, Founder of Danaher
Steven P Rales DePauw '73 Billionaire, Founder of Danaher
Steven Rogel Washington 1965 CEO of The Weyerhaeuser Company
Frank Shrontz Idaho 1954 Past Chairman and CEO of The Boeing Company
Jeffrey Skilling Southern Methodist 1975 former CEO of Enron
Kenneth A. Spencer Kansas 1921 Founder, President, and CEO of Spencer Chemical Company
Warren Staley Kansas State 1965 Chairman and CEO of Cargill
G. Kennedy Thompson North Carolina 1973 CEO Wachovia, 2000-2008, Board Member of Hewlett-Packard
James R. Ukropina Stanford '37 Board Member Lockheed Martin/ Directions LLC, CEO
N. T. Veatch Kansas 1902 Co-Founder and CEO of Black and Veatch
Sam Walton Missouri 1940 Founder of Wal-Mart
Fred Wilson MIT 1983 Venture capitalist and prominent blogger
James Wilson Southern California 1957 International Grocery Store Mogal
David H. Severson Kansas State 1986 Vice President of Koch Mineral Services
John D. Zeglis[4] University of Illinois 1969 Former Chairman and CEO of AT&T Wireless

Astronauts[1]

Joseph P. Allen DePauw 1959 Former Astronaut; Space Flight Executive; Senior Scientist Astronaut; Mission Specialist for STS-5 mission aboard Columbia and STS-51A mission aboard Discovery
Kenneth D. Cameron MIT 1971 Management Astronaut; Naval Aviator-Astronaut; Colonel, USMC (Ret); Pilot for STS-37 mission aboard Atlantis (STS-37); Commander for STS-56 mission aboard Discovery and STS-74 mission abaord Atlantis; currently Deputy Director for Safety, NASA Engineering & Safety Center, Langley Research Center, Virginia
Bill Nelson Florida 1964/Yale 1965 Former astronaut; former United States Congressman (D-FL), currently the senior United States Senator from Florida (D-FL);

NOTE: Not a career astronaut. Flew single mission (STS-61C) as a Payload Specialist aboard Columbia while serving as a U.S. Congressman whose district included the NASA/John F. Kennedy Space Center and as Chairman of the House Space Science and Applications Subcommittee
Paul J. Weitz Penn State 1954 Former astronaut; Naval Aviator-Astronaut; Captain, USN (Ret); Pilot, Apollo-Skylab 2 (SL-2); Commander for STS-6 mission aboard Challenger; former Deputy Director, Johnson Space Center

Chapters

Main article: List of Beta Theta Pi chapters

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Beta Theta Pi
  2. ^ http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/civil_eng/history.html
  3. ^ "Memorial Service for Congressional Medal of Honor Winner Everett Pope '41 July 31". Bowdoin College. July 17, 2009. http://www.bowdoin.edu/news/archives/1bowdoincampus/006436.shtml. Retrieved 2009-07-21. 
  4. ^ John Zeglis: A Standout

External links

Source

  • Brown, James T., ed., Catalogue of Beta Theta Pi, New York: 1917.
v • d • e
North-American Interfraternity Conference

Acacia • Alpha Gamma Rho • Alpha Gamma Sigma • Alpha Delta Gamma • Alpha Delta Phi • Alpha Epsilon Pi • Alpha Kappa Lambda • Alpha Sigma Phi • Alpha Tau Omega • Alpha Phi Alpha • Alpha Phi Delta • Alpha Chi Rho • Beta Sigma Psi • Beta Theta Pi • Beta Chi Theta • Delta Kappa Epsilon • Delta Sigma Phi • Delta Tau Delta • Delta Upsilon • Delta Phi • Delta Chi • Delta Psi • FarmHouse • Zeta Beta Tau • Zeta Psi • Theta Delta Chi • Theta Xi • Theta Chi • Iota Nu Delta • Iota Phi Theta • Kappa Alpha Order • Kappa Alpha Psi • Kappa Alpha Society • Kappa Delta Rho • Kappa Delta Phi • Lambda Theta Phi • Lambda Sigma Upsilon • Lambda Phi Epsilon • Lambda Chi Alpha • Pi Kappa Alpha • Pi Kappa Phi • Pi Lambda Phi • Sigma Alpha Epsilon • Sigma Alpha Mu • Sigma Lambda Beta • Sigma Nu • Sigma Pi • Sigma Tau Gamma • Sigma Phi Delta • Sigma Phi Epsilon • Sigma Phi Society • Sigma Chi • Tau Delta Phi • Tau Epsilon Phi • Tau Kappa Epsilon • Triangle • Phi Gamma Delta • Phi Iota Alpha • Phi Kappa Theta • Phi Kappa Sigma • Phi Kappa Tau • Phi Kappa Psi • Phi Lambda Chi • Phi Mu Delta • Phi Sigma Kappa • Phi Sigma Phi • Chi Phi • Chi Psi • Psi Upsilon • Omega Delta Phi

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