American Criminal Justice Association–Lambda Alpha Epsilon Explained

Letters:	AJCA-ΛΑΕ
American Criminal Justice Association–Lambda Alpha Epsilon
Affiliation:	Independent
Status:	Active
Type:	Professional
Scope:	National (US)
Country:	United States
Chapters:	121 (69 active)
Publication:	ACJA/LAE Journal ACJA/LAE National Newsletter
Birthplace:	Hayward, California, US
Address:	3211 Fitzgerald Drive
Zip Code:	77356
Members:	4,500

American Criminal Justice Association–Lambda Alpha Epsilon (AJCA-ΛΑΕ) is a coed professional fraternity in the field of criminal justice based in the United States.

History

Lambda Alpha Epsilon held its first meeting in Hayward, California on December 18, 1937.^[1] Initially, it was a professional fraternity for those employed in law enforcement. It was essentially a regional organization, with all members and chapters being located in California.

Its first annual convention was held between June 13 and 15, 1938 in Lodi, California. In 1945, membership was open to individuals who worked full-time for enforcement agencies or as instructors in police training courses in state colleges.

When the School of Criminology was established at the University of California, Berkeley in 1950, the group decided to expand its membership to criminal justice students and chartered the Epsilon chapter.

In 1952, moved outside of California with the establishment of the Zeta chapter at the University of Indiana. The next year, a chapter for women was established in Sacramento. At the 1957 annual meeting, the fraternity voted to open its membership to all aspects of the criminal justice field.

At the Annual Grand Chapter Business Meeting in 1970 in Anaheim, California, the name was changed from Lambda Alpha Epsilon, Professional Law Enforcement Fraternity to Lambda Alpha Epsilon, Professional Criminal Justice Fraternity. In February 1973, it was proposed that the name be changed to Lambda Alpha Epsilon – American Criminal Justice Association, which was then adopted. The name was adopted later in the year. In 1976, the name was reversed to "American Criminal Justice Association – Lambda Alpha Epsilon."

Symbols and traditions

The fraternity's name was selected for the letters ΛΑΕ which represent the Greek words Lambano (to detect and apprehend), Anakrinen (to adjudicate), and Exorthoun (to rehabilitate).^[2]

The Lambda Alpha Epsilon emblem is a hexagon with the Greek letters ΛΑΕ across its center. Below the letters is a spider web that represents "the great complexity of criminal activity". Above the letter are a pair of scales that symbolize justice and a six-pointed star which represents the "light of knowledge".

The ACJA/LAE Journal and the ACJA/LAE National Newsletter are published semiannually.^[3]

Activties

AJCA-ΛΑΕ seeks "to improve the administration of criminal justice through educational activities, to foster professionalism within agencies of criminal justice, to encourage better communication and expansion of higher education in the field of criminal justice, and to aid and assist all persons to prevent criminal activity." The fraternity holds a week-long national convention that includes seminars and written, physical, and practical competitions. It also awards annual scholarships to members.

Membership

Membership in AJCA-ΛΑΕ is open to individuals who are committed to the field of criminal justice through their profession or education, those who are retired from a career in criminal justice, or those who volunteer in areas related to the administration of criminal justice. As of 2007, the fraternity has 4,500 active members.^[4]

Chapters

As of 2024, there are 69 active chapters of Lambda Alpha Epsilon.^[5] Collegiate chapters are located at colleges and universities with criminal justice programs. Professional chapters are located geographically or at an agency for criminal justice professionals.

Following is a list of Lambda Alpha Epsilon chapters. Active chapters are indicated in bold. Inactive chapters are in italics.

Chapter	Charter date and range	Type	Institution	Location	Status	References
Alpha First		Professional		Hayward, California	Reassigned
Alpha		Professional		Martinez, California	Active
Beta First		Professional		Los, Angeles, California	Reassigned
Beta		Collegiate	Greenville Technical College	Greenville, South Carolina	Active
Gamma	c. 1945	Professional		San Jose, California	Inactive
Delta	c. 1945	Professional		San Francisco, California	Inactive
Epsilon	1950	Collegiate	University of California, Berkeley	Berkeley, California	Inactive
Zeta	1952	Collegiate	University of Indiana		Inactive
Eta	c. 1950	Professional		Sacramento, California	Inactive
Theta	1953	Professional	Women's Chapter	Sacramento, California	Inactive
Iota	1956		Sacramento State University	Sacramento, California	Inactive
Lambda		Collegiate	Florida State University	Tallahassee, Florida	Active
Mu		Collegiate	California State University, Los Angeles	Los Angeles, California	Active
Nu					Inactive
Xi					Inactive
Omicron		Collegiate	University of Louisville	Louisville, Kentucky	Active
Pi					Inactive
Rho					Inactive
Sigma					Inactive
Tau					Inactive
Upsilon					Inactive
Phi					Inactive
Chi		Collegiate	Truman State University	Kirksville, Missouri	Active
Psi					Inactive
Delta Chi		Collegiate	Sam Houston State University	Huntsville, Texas	Active
Iota Sigma		Collegiate	Indiana State University	Terre Haute, Indiana	Active
Pi Kappa	1961	Collegiate	Cerritos College	Norwalk, California	Inactive
Pi Chi		Collegiate	Florida State University Panama City	Panama City, Florida	Active
Sigma Zeta		Collegiate	Clemson University	Clemson, South Carolina	Active
Sigma Pi		Collegiate	Long Beach City College	Long Beach, California	Active
Sigma Chi		Collegiate	California State University, Sacramento	Sacramento, California	Active
Chi Nu		Collegiate	Radford University	Radford, Virginia	Active
Psi Omega		Collegiate	University of New Haven	West Haven, Connecticut	Active
Delta Psi Chi		Collegiate	Boise State University	Boise, Idaho	Active
Eta Alpha Mu		Professional		Gilroy, California	Active
Alpha Epsilon Phi		Collegiate	Texas State University	San Marcos, Texas	Active
Alpha Sigma Omega		Collegiate	Jacksonville State University	Jacksonville, Alabama	Active
Alpha Upsilon Beta		Collegiate	University of Arkansas	Fayetteville, Arkansas	Active
Alpha Upsilon Lambda		Professional		Danville, Virginia	Active
Alpha Phi Kappa		Collegiate	Lamar University	Beaumont, Texas	Active
Alpha Psi Omega		Collegiate	University of Pittsburgh	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	Active
Alpha Omega Rho		Collegiate	Webber International University	Babson Park, Florida	Active
Beta Kappa Rho		Collegiate	Ferris State University	Big Rapids, Michigan	Active
Beta Phi Zeta		Collegiate	St. Edward's University	Austin, Texas	Active
Beta Sigma Omega Lambda		Collegiate	Inver Hills Community College	Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota	Active
Gamma Alpha Epsilon		Collegiate	Collin College	McKinney, Texas	Active
Gamma Epsilon Delta		Collegiate	University of Central Missouri	Warrensburg, Missouri	Active
Gamma Theta Epsilon		Collegiate	Franciscan University of Steubenville	Steubenville, Ohio	Active
Delta Zeta Omega		Collegiate	University of Central Florida	Orlando, Florida	Active
Delta Sigma Upsilon		Collegiate	Dalton State College	Dalton, Georgia	Active
Delta Sigma Chi		Collegiate	Dyersburg State Community College	Covington, Tennessee	Active
Delta Tau Omega		Collegiate	Fort Hays State University	Hays, Kansas	Active
Delta Chi Alpha		Alumni		Montgomery, Texas	Active
Delta Kappa Epsilon		Collegiate	Northern Oklahoma College	Tonkawa, Oklahoma	Active
Epsilon Chi Chi		Collegiate	El Paso Community College	El Paso, Texas	Active
Epsilon Chi Upsilon		Collegiate	East Central University	Ada, Oklahoma	Active
Zeta Epsilon Nu		Collegiate	University of Tennessee at Martin	Martin, Tennessee	Active
Theta Lambda Chi		Professional		Buena Park, California	Active
Iota Kappa Chi		Collegiate	University of Texas Rio Grande Valley	Brownsville, Texas	Active
Kappa Xi Sigma		Collegiate	Ocean County College	Toms River, New Jersey	Active
Kappa Omicron Rho		Collegiate	Peru State College	Peru, Nebraska	Active
Kappa Omega Psi		Collegiate	Colorado Technical University	Aurora, Colorado	Active
Lambda Kappa Alpha		Collegiate	Longwood University	Farmville, Virginia	Active
Lambda Mu Upsilon		Collegiate	James Madison University	Harrisonburg, Virginia	Active
Nu Alpha Chi		Collegiate	Northeast Alabama Community College	Rainsville, Alabama	Active
Nu Sigma Alpha		Collegiate	University of North Carolina at Charlotte	Charlotte, North Carolina	Active
Pi Lambda Alpha		Collegiate	Central Methodist University	Fayette, Missouri	Active
Sigma Gamma Phi		Collegiate	Northwestern State University	Natchitoches, Louisiana	Active
Sigma Delta Omega		Collegiate	Arizona Western College	Yuma, Arizona	Active
Sigma Iota Gamma		Professional		Strongsville, Ohio	Active
Sigma Kappa Chi		Collegiate	University of Texas Rio Grande Valley	Edinburg, Texas	Active
Sigma Tau Omicron		Collegiate	West Chester University	West Chester, Pennsylvania	Active
Sigma Chi Alpha		Collegiate	Barton College	Wilson, North Carolina	Active
Sigma Chi Nu		Collegiate	Northern Virginia Community College	Manassas, Virginia	Active
Tau Alpha Omicron		Collegiate	Trine University	Angola, Indiana	Active
Tau Epsilon Lambda		Collegiate	Garden City Community College	Garden City, Kansas	Active
Phi Omega Alpha		Collegiate	California State University, Fresno	Fresno, California	Active
Phi Alpha Sigma		Collegiate	Western Illinois University	Macomb, Illinois	Active
Phi Kappa Sigma		Collegiate	Talladega College	Taladega, Alabama	Active
Chi Sigma Upsilon		Collegiate	Columbia Southern University	Online	Active
Psi Sigma Iota		Collegiate	Kent State University	Kent, Ohio	Active
Omega Sigma Alpha		Collegiate	University of Scranton	Scranton, Pennsylvania	Active
Omega Omega Omgega	1963	Collegiate	Rio Honda College	Whittier, California	Inactive
Alpha Omega Delta Zeta		Collegiate	Keiser University	Orlando, Florida	Active
Gamma Epsilon Zeta Rho		Professional		Newark, Delaware	Active
Lambda Epsilon Omega Sigma		Collegiate	Paradise Valley Community College	Phoenix, Arizona	Active
Nu Omega Lambda Omicron		Collegiate	College of the Muscogee Nation	Okmulgee, Oklahoma	Active
Chi Omega Pi Sigma		Professional		Boothwyn, Pennsylvania	Active

See also

• Professional fraternities and sororities

Notes and References

1. Web site: Our History . 2024-01-26 . American Criminal Justice Association (ACJA-LAE) . en.
2. Web site: Emblem . 2024-01-26 . American Criminal Justice Association (ACJA-LAE) . en.
3. Book: Sharon Lyles . Directory of Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Associations and Research Centers . Marilyn Leach . Ruth Joel . U.S. Department of Commerce, Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology . 1996 . 4.
4. Book: Steverson, Leonard A. . Policing in America: A Reference Handbook . 2007-08-28 . Bloomsbury Publishing USA . 978-1-59884-044-5 . 213 . en . Google Books.
5. Web site: Chapters . 2024-01-26 . American Criminal Justice Association (ACJA-LAE) . en.