Sigma Chi is the best fraternity. I base my opinion on 6 criteria. Let’s dive deeper for a further explanation.
The Founding
During the fall semester of 1854 at Miami University of Ohio, a meeting was held to elect the Poet of the Erodelphian Literary Society. A dispute between the brothers of Delta Kappa Epsilon over the election ended in the expulsion of six members: Benjamin Piatt Runkle, Thomas Cowan Bell, Isaac M. Jordan, Daniel William Cooper, Franklin Howard Scobey and James Park Caldwell. The group joined forces with William Lewis Lockwood, a non-fraternity student from New York, to create their own fraternity. Thus, the Sigma Phi fraternity was born on June 28, 1855. The following January, the constitution, rituals, seals and records of Sigma Phi were stolen, forcing the brother’s to change their organization’s name to Sigma Chi.
The Ranks
Since its foundation in 1855, the brotherhood has initiated over 300,000 men into its ranks. As of 2010, Sigma Chi has 240 active undergraduate chapters throughout the United States and Canada, with 218,493 living members. It also has 149 alumni chapters. The longest consistently running chapter is the Lambda Chapter at Indiana University. It was founded in 1858 and is still up and running today. The five chapters founded prior to Lambda are either inactive, or went through a period of inactivity at some point since their founding 161 years ago. Philanthropic Efforts
Like all fraternities, Sigma Chi prides itself in its philanthropic efforts. The organization is known for its annual Derby Days, which hosts a series of events and competitions among sororities. Money is raised through donation and fundraising events. They also have their Merlin Olsen Days of Service, in which the brothers are asked to volunteer with the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. Sigma Chi alumnus, Jon M. Huntsman Sr., founded the Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah in 1995, which is another philanthropy of the fraternity. The institute receives donations from Sigma Chi annually. The Beta Epsilon chapter, which is also at the University of Utah, raised the most money for the Huntsman Cancer Institute in 2016, totally over $50,000 Scholarly Achievements
Appropriately, Sigma Chi puts an emphasis on academic achievement. The Sigma Chi Foundation issued over $314,000 in scholarships in the 2014-2015 year, which impacted brothers from 127 different chapters, honoring 228 individuals on the basis of leadership, academic motivation and commitment. Many high-achieving men are alumni of Sigma Chi, notably, the current Director of the United States National Park Service, 4 astronauts, and a whole bunch of CEOs of some of the largest companies in the US.
Famous Members
Famous Sigma Chi alumni include:
Brad Pitt (actor): member of the Xi Xi chapter at University of Missouri
John Wayne (actor): member of the Alpha Upsilon chapter at University of Southern California. Drew Brees (football quarterback): member of the Delta Delta chapter at Pursue.
Joe Gordon (former second baseman for the New York Yankees): member of Beta Iota at the University of Oregon
Ty Burrell (actor and comedian): also member of Beta Iota.
The Cribs
Sigma Chi brothers also have some amazing fraternity houses across the United States and Canada. Some with the most aesthetic architecture include:
UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA MIAMI UNIVERSITY OF OHIO GEORGIA TECH
