The Interfraternity Council gave Alpha Epsilon Pi full membership status at its meeting Tuesday, giving the fraternity the ability to vote on recruitment issues and allowing members to run for IFC’s Executive Board.
“By getting full status, that really puts us on the same level as all the other chapters,” said Michael Zoldessy, a Speech junior and AEPi president. “It makes the Greek community that much more unified.”
AEPi became an associate member of IFC last October. Currently, the fraternity has 33 members and one member in training.
IFC President James Troupis said he was pleased with the decision to add AEPi to the IFC.
“AEPi is a huge asset to the Greek community,” Troupis said. “They have great service, unbelievable scholarship, and great membership and social programming. If anything, they are a model fraternity.”
AEPi hasn’t always been held in such high regard. It tried to join IFC in November 1996 but was denied.
Since then AEPi operated as an underground fraternity, rushing students during Fall Quarter, whereas all IFC member fraternities have to wait until Winter Quarter to begin recruiting new members.
This past year, they altered their rush to meet IFC standards.
AEPi also continued involvement with philanthropic events, including playing bingo with the Kagen Home for the Blind in Chicago and ordering Krispy Kreme donuts to benefit Dance Marathon.
AEPi also has been active socially. It has participated in events such as Greek Olympics and intramural sports, and has held events with several sororities including Alpha Chi Omega and Delta Gamma.
With its full membership status, AEPi plans to continue to establish itself by having more events with other fraternities and sororities, said Dan Birnbaum, a Speech senior and former AEPi president.
AEPi has the added distinction of being NU’s only religiously affiliated fraternity.
The fraternity is non-exclusive and there are non-Jewish members, though the national organization is founded on a Jewish mission statement, which says that AEPi was “founded to provide opportunities for the Jewish college man.”
The fraternity has been located at 562 Lincoln St. since last spring when NU administrators granted AEPi use of the residence hall.
Sixteen members of AEPi live in the house with a resident assistant and must follow residence hall rules.
AEPi is not sure if it will have a resident assistant next year.
“I’m very pleased and thankful to the Northwestern community and IFC to allow us to be a part of them because it’s a goal we’ve always been focused on achieving,” Birnbaum said. “We’ll no longer be the new guys in the group.”
