Tau Epsilon Phi

<h1 id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading" lang="en">Tau Epsilon Phi</h1>

<div id="siteSub">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</div>

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<th colspan="2" class="fn org" >Tau Epsilon Phi</th>

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<th scope="row" >Founded</th>

<td>October 10, 1910; 104 years ago

<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_University" title="Columbia University">Columbia University</a></td>

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<td><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_social_fraternities_and_sororities" title="List of social fraternities and sororities">Social fraternity</a></td>

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<th scope="row" >Motto</th>

<td>Friendship, Chivalry, Service<sup id="cite_ref-constitution_1-0" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-constitution-1">[1]</a></sup></td>

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<th scope="row" >Colors</th>

<td><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavender_%28color%29" title="Lavender (color)">Lavender</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White" title="White">White</a><sup id="cite_ref-constitution_1-1" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-constitution-1">[1]</a></sup></td>

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<th scope="row" >Flower</th>

<td><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leucocrinum" title="Leucocrinum">Lily of the Mountain</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violet_%28plant%29" title="Violet (plant)" class="mw-redirect">Violets</a> in combination<sup id="cite_ref-constitution_1-2" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-constitution-1">[1]</a></sup></td>

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<th scope="row" >Jewel</th>

<td><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emerald" title="Emerald">Emeralds</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl" title="Pearl">Pearls</a><sup id="cite_ref-constitution_1-3" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-constitution-1">[1]</a></sup></td>

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<th scope="row" >Chapters</th>

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<th scope="row" >Colonies</th>

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<th scope="row" >Homepage</th>

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<p><b>Tau Epsilon Phi</b> (<b>ΤΕΦ</b>, commonly pronounced <b>TEP</b>) is an <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States" title="United States">American</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraternities_and_sororities_in_North_America" title="Fraternities and sororities in North America">fraternity</a> with 12 active chapters and 3 active colonies, and 20 official alumni clubs<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-2">[2]</a></sup> chiefly located at universities and colleges on the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Coast_of_the_United_States" title="East Coast of the United States">East Coast</a>. The national headquarters is located in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Jersey" title="New Jersey">New Jersey</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voorhees_Township,New_Jersey" title="Voorhees Township, New Jersey">township of Voorhees</a> and the official colors of the organization are <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavender%28color%29" title="Lavender (color)">lavender</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White" title="White">white</a> (although most chapters use <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purple" title="Purple">purple</a> instead of lavender).<sup id="cite_ref-Suntag_3-0" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-Suntag-3">[3]</a></sup>

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<h2>Contents</h2>

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<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-1"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#Ideals">1 Ideals</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-2"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#History">2 History</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-3"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#Organization">3 Organization</a>

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<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-4"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#Grand_Chapter">3.1 Grand Chapter</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-5"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#Chapters">3.2 Chapters</a></li>

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<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-6"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#Notable_alumni">4 Notable alumni</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-8"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#References">6 References</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-9"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#External_links">7 External links</a></li>

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<h2>Ideals</h2>

<p>The organization's creed asserts its governing ideals as "friendship, chivalry, service." TEP attracts and accepts brothers of all religions and ethnicities who agree to be bound by these ideals. Chapters uphold these ideals through participation in various social, academic, athletic and charity events.</p>

<h2>History</h2>

<p>The organization was founded on October 10, 1910 by ten <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jew" title="Jew" class="mw-redirect">Jewish</a> men at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_University" title="Columbia University">Columbia University</a>, as a response to the existence of similar organizations which would not admit Jewish members.<sup id="cite_ref-Suntag_3-1" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-Suntag-3">[3]</a></sup> The first pledge, Maximillian Nemser, was initiated in 1911 and, in 1912, the first new chapter was founded at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_University" title="New York University">New York University</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-Suntag_3-2" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-Suntag-3">[3]</a></sup> Continued expansion led to the adoption of a national constitution in 1916.<sup id="cite_ref-Suntag_3-3" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-Suntag-3">[3]</a></sup>

In 1920, the opening of a chapter at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McGill_University" title="McGill University">McGill University</a> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada" title="Canada">Canada</a>'s then-largest city, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montreal" title="Montreal">Montreal</a>, made TEΦ an international fraternity.<sup id="cite_ref-Suntag_3-4" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-Suntag-3">[3]</a></sup> The McGill chapter has since been disbanded. The oldest remaining chapter, as of 2015, is the Nu chapter at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Georgia" title="University of Georgia">University of Georgia</a>. Beginning in 1923, the organization has published a nationally distributed magazine, <i>The Plume</i>.<sup id="cite_ref-Suntag_3-5" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-Suntag-3">[3]</a></sup>

TEΦ was initially exclusively Jewish, but began admitting non-Jewish members (predominantly <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholics" title="Catholics" class="mw-redirect">Catholics</a>) in the 1950s.<sup id="cite_ref-Suntag_3-6" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-Suntag-3">[3]</a></sup> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_Eisenhower" title="President Eisenhower" class="mw-redirect">President Eisenhower</a> was inducted as an honorary member during his administration.<sup id="cite_ref-Suntag_3-7" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-Suntag-3">[3]</a></sup> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington,D.C." title="Washington, D.C.">Washington, D.C.</a> mayor <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincent_C.Gray" title="Vincent C. Gray">Vincent C. Gray</a> was the first black member of Tau Epsilon Phi and was elected president of his local chapter for two consecutive terms.<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-4">[4]</a></sup>

In 1986, Sidney Suntag, who served as Executive Secretary from 1946 to 1979, published the book <i>The History of Tau Epsilon Phi: 75 Years of Friendship 1910–1985</i> recounting the national history of the fraternity.<sup id="cite_ref-Suntag_3-8" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-Suntag-3">[3]</a></sup>

In September 2010, a group of fraternity members filed a civil lawsuit against the national Tau Epsilon Phi organization. The plaintiffs alleged that the board of directors and national executive director had been operating the fraternity for personal financial gain and that they drove chapters away by making unreasonable financial demands on them. They further argued that the executive director failed to hold elections for the position for over 10 years, even though the fraternity's constitution required it biannually. The executive director stated that elections could not take place because none of the chapters were in good standing due to failure to pay dues, and thus there was no one who could legitimately vote.<sup id="cite_ref-NYT2010_5-0" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-NYT2010-5">[5]</a></sup> While the judge in the case ordered a new election overseen by an independent party,<sup id="cite_ref-NYT2010_5-1" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-NYT2010-5">[5]</a></sup> that order was automatically stayed after the national organization filed for <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chapter_7,Title_11,United_States_Code" title="Chapter 7, Title 11, United States Code">Chapter 7 bankruptcy</a> in January 2011.<sup id="cite_ref-NYT2011_6-0" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-NYT2011-6">[6]</a></sup> In May 2011, all allegations were rescinded,<sup id="cite_ref-infighting_7-0" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-infighting-7">[7]</a></sup> the parties settled all outstanding cases and the fraternity agreed to hold new national elections.<sup id="cite_ref-settlement_8-0" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-settlement-8">[8]</a></sup></p>

<h2>Organization</h2>

<h3>Grand Chapter</h3>

<p>As of October 25, 1997, the Constitution of Tau Epsilon Phi required that a Grand Chapter meeting be held every 2 years. The Grand Chapter consists of delegates from each local undergraduate and alumni chapter. The Grand Chapter serves as the supreme legislature with sole responsibility for electing the Grand Council. The Grand Chapter, while in session, also serves as TEP’s Board of Directors, authorizing or approving all fraternity business, including any modifications to the Constitution and Statutory Code.<sup id="cite_ref-constitution_1-4" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-constitution-1">[1]</a></sup></p>

<h3>Chapters</h3>

<div class="hatnote relarticle mainarticle">Main article: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Tau_Epsilon_Phi_chapters" title="List of Tau Epsilon Phi chapters">List of Tau Epsilon Phi chapters</a></div>

<h2>Notable alumni</h2>

<p>Some notable alumni:<sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-9">[9]</a></sup>

<b>Arts/Entertainment:</b></p>

<ul>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Altman" title="Jeff Altman">Jeff Altman</a> – stand-up comedian</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_David" title="Larry David">Larry David</a> – actor, writer, comedian, and television producer</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Duchovny" title="David Duchovny">David Duchovny</a> – actor, writer and director</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benny_Goodman" title="Benny Goodman">Benny Goodman</a> – musician and bandleader</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_King" title="Larry King">Larry King</a> – TV and radio host</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_Kott" title="Gary Kott">Gary Kott</a> - writer and supervising producer of The Cosby Show, Kott worked on the program during its five consecutive years of number one Nielsen ratings.</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Springer" title="Jerry Springer">Jerry Springer</a> – TV and radio host</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Stephanopoulos" title="George Stephanopoulos">George Stephanopoulos</a> – TV journalist</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Wapner" title="Joseph Wapner">Joseph Wapner</a> – judge, <i><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_People%27s_Court" title="The People's Court">The People's Court</a></i></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Sabol" title="Ed Sabol">Ed Sabol</a> – filmmaker, founder of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NFL_Films" title="NFL Films">NFL Films</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mat_Franco" title="Mat Franco">Mat Franco</a> - entertainer, magician, winner of Season 09 of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America%27s_Got_Talent" title="America's Got Talent">America's Got Talent</a></li>

</ul>

<p><b>Sports/Athletics:</b></p>

<ul>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Auerbach" title="Red Auerbach">Red Auerbach</a> – general manager, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Celtics" title="Boston Celtics">Boston Celtics</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bryan_Clark" title="Bryan Clark">Bryan Clark</a> – professional wrestler</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jared_Ross" title="Jared Ross">Jared Ross</a> – professional hockey player</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Fogler" title="Eddie Fogler">Eddie Fogler</a> – college basketball coach</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howie_Roseman" title="Howie Roseman">Howie Roseman</a> – general manager, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philadelphia_Eagles" title="Philadelphia Eagles">Philadelphia Eagles</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jedd_Fisch" title="Jedd Fisch">Jedd Fisch</a> - offensive coordinator, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan_Wolverines" title="Michigan Wolverines">Michigan Wolverines</a></li>

</ul>

<p><b>Politics/Government:</b></p>

<ul>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omar_Bradley" title="Omar Bradley">Omar Bradley</a> – <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_of_the_Army_%28United_States%29" title="General of the Army (United States)">General of the Army</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chairman_of_the_Joint_Chiefs_of_Staff" title="Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff">Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff</a> (accepted honorary membership)</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwight_D._Eisenhower" title="Dwight D. Eisenhower">Dwight D. Eisenhower</a> – <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Presidents_of_the_United_States" title="List of Presidents of the United States">34th President of the United States</a> (accepted honorary membership)</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_A._Gottlieb" title="Kenneth A. Gottlieb">Kenneth A. Gottlieb</a>, representative in the House of Representatives of Florida</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincent_C.Gray" title="Vincent C. Gray">Vincent C. Gray</a> – mayor, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington,D.C." title="Washington, D.C.">Washington, D.C.</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Harris" title="Louis Harris">Louis Harris</a> – founder, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harris_Poll" title="Harris Poll" class="mw-redirect">Harris Poll</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irving_R._Kaufman" title="Irving R. Kaufman" class="mw-redirect">Irving R. Kaufman</a> – judge, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Court_of_Appeals_for_the_Second_Circuit" title="United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit">United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elliott_H._Levitas" title="Elliott H. Levitas">Elliott H. Levitas</a> – U.S. Representative, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia%27s_4th_congressional_district" title="Georgia's 4th congressional district">Georgia's 4th congressional district</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvin_Mandel" title="Marvin Mandel">Marvin Mandel</a> – governor, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maryland" title="Maryland">Maryland</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Saperstein_%28rabbi%29" title="David Saperstein (rabbi)">David Saperstein</a> - <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Ambassador-at-Large_for_International_Religious_Freedom" title="United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom">United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom</a>, the first non-Christian to hold this office.<sup id="cite_ref-Time_10-0" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-Time-10">[10]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-11">[11]</a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-12">[12]</a></sup></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melvin_Steinberg" title="Melvin Steinberg">Melvin Steinberg</a> – fifth <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lieutenant_Governor_of_Maryland" title="Lieutenant Governor of Maryland">Lieutenant Governor of Maryland</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirill_Reznik" title="Kirill Reznik">Kirill Reznik</a> – state delegate, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maryland_House_of_Delegates" title="Maryland House of Delegates">Maryland House of Delegates</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_S._Steele" title="Michael S. Steele" class="mw-redirect">Michael S. Steele</a> – lieutenant governor, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maryland" title="Maryland">Maryland</a> and Chairman, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_National_Committee" title="Republican National Committee">Republican National Committee</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rick_Santorum" title="Rick Santorum">Rick Santorum</a> – U.S. Senator, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania" title="Pennsylvania">Pennsylvania</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_M._Gordon" title="Leo M. Gordon">Leo M. Gordon</a> – judge, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Court_of_International_Trade" title="United States Court of International Trade">United States Court of International Trade</a></li>

</ul>

<p><b>Business/Science/Engineering:</b></p>

<ul>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Abramovitz" title="Max Abramovitz">Max Abramovitz</a> – architect<sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tau_Epsilon_Phi#cite_note-13">[13]</a></sup></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_J._LeFrak" title="Samuel J. LeFrak">Samuel J. LeFrak</a> – chairman, LeFrak Corporation</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonas_Salk" title="Jonas Salk">Jonas Salk</a> – discoverer of polio vaccine</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Kurzweil" title="Raymond Kurzweil" class="mw-redirect">Raymond Kurzweil</a> – author and inventor</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Siegel_%28attorney%29" title="Bernard Siegel (attorney)">Bernard Siegel</a> – director, Genetics Policy Institute</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chad_Trujillo" title="Chad Trujillo">Chad Trujillo</a> – astronomer and co-discoverer of 12 <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans-Neptunian_objects" title="Trans-Neptunian objects" class="mw-redirect">trans-Neptunian objects</a>, including <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eris_%28dwarf_planet%29" title="Eris (dwarf planet)">Eris</a></li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Woodward" title="Neil Woodward">Neil Woodward</a>, American Naval officer and a former NASA astronaut</li>

</ul>

<p><b>Other</b>:</p>

<ul>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guy_Fulton" title="Guy Fulton">Guy Fulton</a>, architect</li>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Sager" title="Mike Sager">Mike Sager</a> – bestselling author and award-winning journalist</li>

</ul>

<ul>

<li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_social_fraternities_and_sororities" title="List of social fraternities and sororities">List of social fraternities and sororities</a></li>

</ul>

Tau Epsilon Phi

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