In 1901, Sigma Phi Epsilon was founded at Richmond College in Virginia by 12 young collegians that desired a campus fellowship based on Judeo/Christian ideals that neither the college community nor the fraternity system at that time could offer.
The founders described the fraternity as so: "This fraternity will be different, it will be based on the love of God and the principle of peace through brotherhood.”
Founder Lucian Cox reflected on the "brotherhood that had inspired him and his brothers" when he wrote in the Sigma Phi Epsilon Journal, Vol. 1 No. 1, March, 1904: "As a member of an ideal fraternity, the resources of every member of that body are my resources, the product of their lives is my daily life. The fraternity is a common storehouse for experience, moral rectitude, and spirituality; the larger and purer the contribution of the individual, the greater the resources of each member."
In slightly less than 10 years, Sigma Phi Epsilon had grown from a single chapter to a fraternity with chapters in 21 states and the District of Columbia. By 1959, Sigma Phi Epsilon had 148 active chapters. Sigma Phi Epsilon chartered 33 new chapters between 1960 and 1969, and membership reached its highest levels. In 1968, the College Survey Bureau reported that 59% of the 173 chapters were among the top chapters on their campuses.
The turn of the 20th Century found Sigma Phi Epsilon poised for continued excellence and a renewed emphasis on the Fraternity’s mission, “Building Balanced Leaders for the World’s Communities.”
To answer the demand for leaders, SigEp pioneered the Leadership Continuum, the first such development program of its kind in the fraternity world. In 1999, with support from the Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation, the Carlson Leadership Academies were expanded to reach more undergraduate participants and heighten the undergraduate experience. Also in 1999, a new leadership experience, designed to develop leadership skills in SigEp’s most promising members, found its debut. Named after Frank J. Ruck, University of Michigan (Michigan Alpha), ’46, Past Grand President and President of the North-American Interfraternity Conference, the Ruck Leadership Institute teaches the few to lead the many.
To facilitate the needs of the newest brothers, 2001 saw the addition of the New Member Camp, now called EDGE, to the Leadership Continuum. This program, which focuses on acclimation to college and substance abuse prevention, has fast become a favorite event for all new SigEps. At the pinnacle of the Leadership Continuum, SigEp expanded its leadership experience out into the world. In May of 2001, the Sigma Phi Epsilon Educational Foundation began the Balanced Man Quest to Greece. A handful of Balanced Man Scholars are selected to travel to Greece each summer, sharing common readings and learning of the origin of the Balanced Man Ideal.
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