If you’ve ever had evening classes in Tiernan, you’ve definitely seen the same group of guys selling Dunkin’ Donuts coffee and doughnuts every Monday through Thursday. Have you ever wondered who they were or what they were about? Their aim is to better the men on campus who choose to join them. They are Alpha Sigma Phi.
More commonly known as “Alpha Sig,” this fraternity’s chapter, Alpha Rho, was the first fraternity to be recognized by NJIT in 1921 when the university was still called the Newark College of Engineering. Since then, NJIT’s chapter has been recognized as their fraternity’s best chapter internationally among 92 other chapters and was subsequently awarded the Grand Senior President’s cup twice within the last three years.
Alpha Sigma Phi’s purpose is to “better the man” through upholding their five values of silence, charity, purity, honor, and patriotism. With regards to academics, they currently hold the highest minimum GPA requirement among all social fraternities on campus at a 3.0.
Selling coffee and doughnuts is just one of the ways that Alpha Sig fundraises for charities such as the Ronald McDonald House. They have one charity for each of their five values and work hard to publicize and build rapport for their various fundraising endeavors on campus. For instance, as a part of their new member education process, Alpha Sigma Phi is currently holding “Shave an Alpha Sig,” a fundraising tradition between pairs of Bigs and Littles in which students may contribute money to the pair that they want to see have their heads shaved. Tabling for this fundraiser occurred last week and will continue throughout the week before spring break in the lobby of the Campus Center.
In April, Alpha Sig will be working alongside Alpha Sigma Tau, one of NJIT’s sororities, to host a unique event that has never been held at the university before: a spelling bee. Participation in the spelling bee will be open to any student who may be interested.
“I want to show the rest of the student body that academics are emphasized within the Greek community, contrary to how the media typically portrays Greek Life,” states John Vito d’Antonio-Bertagnolli, Alpha Rho’s scholarship director and a host of the spelling bee. “I’m excited and confident that the spelling bee will become a tradition for the entire university to enjoy for years to come.”
The brothers of Alpha Sigma Phi are located in their own house in the Greek Village, where they all agree that joining Alpha Sig was like finding a new family. Kevin Lorenc, the current President of the fraternity believes that “Alpha Sig has taught [him] to be a leader, to give back to [his] community, and to always strive for excellence.”
“Alpha Sigma Phi is the most tight knit group of people who never wanted to join an organization I think I’ll ever have the fortune of managing,” adds Vice President, Andrew Guadalupe. “…my only regret in joining is that I can’t spend more time here.”
