Welcome Back,

After a well-deserved holiday break, the brothers of Pi Kappa Phi are kicking off the semester here on North Campus with Rush Week 2010!

If you are a freshman, you're probably wondering what to expect over the next week or so. To put it plainly, you will have the opportunity to get the feel for many of the Greek organizations here at Cornell. Ask any brother on campus, and they will tell you that rush week was one of their favorite college experiences. But why? What's in it for you?

Between Cat in the Frat, Legends, and Thanksgiving Dinner, many new faces passed through Pi Kapp's doors last semester. From the outside, fraternity life may seem to be a blur of parties, but behind each event is an intricate organization of men working together - a brotherhood. Rush Week is a chance for the brotherhood to get to know you on a personal level - to attach a name to your face. Throughout the upcoming week, we will be hosting a series of events and activities that let brothers and rushees get to know each other in a fun, laid-back setting, rather than the party scene. As a fraternity, this gives us the chance to reach into Cornell's vast student body and find the men who belong here at Pi Kappa Phi. While joining a fraternity is a big commitment, rushing is a no-brainer: food, fun, and camaraderie with others who can offer answers and advice about Greek life here at Cornell.

Many young men come to rush week unsure of what they want, and that's okay. Some are already familiar with Pi Kapp, some will be led here by friends, and some will just stumble through the doors unexpectedly - in any case, all will find themselves among good people and good times. Stop by, have a blast, and learn how Pi Kappa Phi can enhance your life at Cornell and beyond.

If you have any questions (or if you just want to talk), email me at jgp68@cornell.edu.

Jonathan Panter
Vice President
Class of 2012

The fraternity movement began in 1776 when Thomas Jefferson formed a literary and political society with his closest friends at The College of William and Mary, and has been closely intertwined with the American experience ever since.

Fraternities have been born between men seeking brotherhood, fellowship, common understanding, and lifelong commitment, in nearly every imaginable environment – from the battlefields of the Civil War to the dining hall of a New York college to the second floor of a downtown storefront in Charleston. More than 250 years of leaders, scholars, athletes, citizens, and stewards have been shaped and built by the fraternity experience, and Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity is proud to be a leading member of that legacy.

Founded as Nu Phi (the non-fraternity) in Charleston, South Carolina at the turn of the 20th Century, we have grown from humble beginnings based in friendship and trust to a nationwide brotherhood of more than 80,000 men, living and leading in every state and community in our Union.

Learn of the proud history of the American Fraternities, the birth of Nu Phi, and the development of Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity.