Pi Beta Phi - Collegiate Chapters

Collegiate Chapters

A chapter is local Pi Beta Phi affiliates at a particular college or university. When expansion of Pi Beta Phi first began to other college campuses, the fraternity adopted the custom of naming chapters with Greek letters in order of their founding. Thus, the original chapter at Monmouth College became Alpha chapter, the chapter established at Iowa Wesleyan College became Gamma chapter, and so on. This naming convention became cumbersome as the number of chapters increased.

The fraternity now names chapters by their state, followed by the Greek letter designating the order of founding within each state; for example, Alpha chapter at Monmouth College is now known as Illinois Alpha. The sole exception is the chapter at Knox College, which absorbed the chapter at the now-defunct Lombard College and is now known as Illinois Beta-Delta in recognition of both chapters. Now, if a chapter closes for any reason, its name remains unused until such time as the chapter can be re-established at the same university.

Each chapter elects an Executive Council consisting of a President and nine Vice Presidents (Member Development, Fraternity Development, Finance, Membership, Administration, Philanthropy, Communications, Event Planning and Housing). Each chapter also has an Alumnae Advisory Committee and House Corporation comprising fraternity alumnae living in the area who assist the chapter.

Chapters are grouped geographically into regions, formerly known as provinces, to facilitate national organization and administration. Each collegiate region has a Regional Director and several Regional Specialists covering different functions.