Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi

Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi
ΣΑΕΠ
The official crest of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi
Founded	October 1, 1998 (1998-10-01) University of California, Davis
Type	Social
Emphasis	Jewish
Colors	Blue      Gold
Symbol	Paw
Flower	Blue Iris
Jewel	Sapphire
Mascot	Lioness
Philanthropy	American Jewish World Service
Homepage	http://www.sigmaaepi.com

Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi (ΣΑΕΠ) is a national Jewish interest sorority that was founded on October 1, 1998 at the University of California, Davis.

Formation

In the early 1990s with the closing of a national Jewish sorority, the University of California, Davis was left without a Jewish women's social organization. Alpha Epsilon Pi, a national Jewish fraternity, urged the women of Davis to start a Jewish women's social organization of their own. With positive response from the campus Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi was formed.

The "Sigma" is meant to represent "sisters of" in honor of Alpha Epsilon Pi's contributions towards the formation of the sorority. Sigma is also the 18th letter of the Greek alphabet in Jewish tradition, the number 18 means chai (life).

The six women who founded the sorority; Alycia Seaman, Erin Glick, Leah Dansker, Rachel Rothfarb, Erin Barker, and Dana Miller are considered the eternal mothers of the sorority.

Despite being a Jewish sorority there is no discrimination based on race, creed, ethnicity, or religious beliefs.

Purpose

"The purpose of this organization shall be to promote unity, support, and a Jewish awareness, as well as to provide a Jewish experience for ourselves, our members, and the community as a whole. This organization is devoted to friendship, motivation, opportunity, leadership, and well-being."

“Sorority Life”

The first season of MTV’s “Sorority Life” was filmed in the spring of 2002 on the UC Davis campus featuring members and pledges of ΣΑΕΠ. Through the airing of the show, ΣΑΕΠ began to expand across the country.

National Board

A national board was started in the summer of 2002 to oversee the expansion and growth of ΣΑΕΠ as a nationwide sorority. Currently, there are 7 alumnae members from different chapters voluntarily serving as the directors on the National Board. 2014-2015 National Board members are:

• Director of Operations: Hilary Stein

• Director of Membership: Jennifer Goldsmith

• Director of Expansion: Chayla Furlong

• Director of Finance: Rachel Levin

• Director of Programming: Emily Wasson

• Director of Public Relations: Dawn Savage

• Director of Protocol: Adi Hanein

National Philanthropy

At the 2008 national convention, Cancer Schmancer was selected as the sorority's national philanthropy.

In 2011 the National Board re-evaluated the national philanthropy and decided to move on to an organization that encompasses all of the philosophies of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi. American Jewish World Service was chosen. In addition to the national philanthropy, some chapters also support local philanthropies.

Chapter list

Name	Founded	Institution	Location	Status	Notes	Reference
Charter	1998	University of California, Davis	Davis, California	Active
Alpha	2003	Arizona State University	Tempe, Arizona	Inactive	As of 2005
Beta	2003	University of Minnesota	Minneapolis, Minnesota	Inactive	As of 2008
Gamma	2003	University of California, Riverside	Riverside, California	Inactive	As of 2006
Delta	2005	University of California, Santa Cruz	Santa Cruz, California	Active
Epsilon	2005	University of Oregon	Eugene, Oregon	Inactive	As of 2005
Zeta	2005	Virginia Tech	Blacksburg, Virginia	Inactive	As of 2011
Eta	2008	University of California, Los Angeles	Los Angeles, California	Active
Theta	2008	Eastern Michigan University	Ypsilanti, Michigan	Inactive	As of 2011
Iota	2009	University of Maryland, Baltimore County	Baltimore, Maryland	Inactive	As of 2014
Lambda	2010	University of Missouri	Columbia, Missouri	Active
Mu	2010	James Madison University	Harrisonburg, Virginia	Active
Nu	2011	University of California, Santa Barbara	Santa Barbara, California	Active
Xi	2013	Binghamton University	Binghamton, New York	Active
Omicron	2014	California State University, Northridge	Northridge, California	Active
Pi	2015	University of Nevada, Reno	Reno, Nevada	Active

In 2001, a chapter was founded at San Diego State University by members of the UC Davis chapter, however they did not remain a chapter of Sigma for very long.