List of Pi Beta Phi chapters explained

Pi Beta Phi is an international women's fraternity founded in 1867. it was the first national secret college society for women based on Greek-letter fraternities for men.

Chapter types

Originally, Pi Beta Phi recognized three types of chapters: College, Associate, and Alumnae. "College" chapters were equivalent to today's Active, collegiate chapters. "Associate" was defined, not as a "colony" as some organizations use the term today, but as a non-collegiate chapter where "members could be obtained possessing the same educational attainments as those possessed by members of the collegiate chapters." By 1884 no further Associate chapters (~Community-based) were created, with the fraternity's determination that none would be created in the future. "Alumnae" chapters had similar privileges as College chapters, except that they did not initiate new members. Alumnae chapters soon evolved into the modern alumnae clubs found today.^{[1] [2]}

Discontinuation of Associate chapters (~Community chapters) and the adoption of a state naming system occurred during the period 1884-1888.

Naming convention

For the first 21 years, chapters were granted names from the same series, without a "state" modifier. Some of these names were reused, as indicated by a (1) or (2) next to a chapter name. By 1888, a critical juncture was reached where any currently active chapters were renamed with a state modifier, a practice that continues today. Several Associate (~Community) chapters from the earlier, I.C. Sorosis period were granted state-series names even if they were dormant; but most were at small schools that had been closed for a decade or more. For clarity, these are listed in a separate section at the end of this list. By 1888 too, the Fraternity had fully shifted away from creating chapters at women's finishing schools, 2-yr schools, small seminaries, or simply non-academic "Associate (~Community) chapters", placing all its focus on 4-year schools.

Chapters

Following is a list of Pi Beta Phi chapters.^{[3] [4] [5]} Active chapters noted in bold, inactive chapters and dormant schools noted in italics.

Chapter	Charter date and range	Institution	City or county	State or province	Country	Status	References
Illinois Alpha	–1884;	Monmouth College	Monmouth	Illinois	US	Active
Iowa Alpha	–2004	Iowa Wesleyan University	Mount Pleasant	Iowa	US	Inactive
Indiana Epsilon (Originally Epsilon)	–1877;	DePauw University	Greencastle	Indiana	US	Active
Illinois Beta (see Illinois Beta-Delta)	–	Lombard College	Galesburg	Illinois	US	Merged
Kansas Alpha		University of Kansas	Lawrence	Kansas	US	Active
Iowa Beta		Simpson College	Indianola	Iowa	US	Active
Iowa Gamma	–1894;	Iowa State University	Ames	Iowa	US	Active
Iowa Epsilon	–1887	Southern Iowa Normal School	Bloomfield	Iowa	US	Inactive
Iowa Zeta		University of Iowa	Iowa City	Iowa	US	Active
Illinois Gamma	–1888	Carthage College	Carthage	Illinois	US	Inactive
Illinois Beta-Delta (see Illinois Beta)		Knox College	Galesburg	Illinois	US	Active
Nebraska Alpha	–1892	York Methodist College	York	Nebraska	US	Inactive	^[6]
Colorado Alpha		University of Colorado Boulder	Boulder	Colorado	US	Active
Colorado Beta	–1980	University of Denver	Denver	Colorado	US	Inactive
Iowa Lambda	–1888	Callanan College (see Drake)	Des Moines	Iowa	US	Inactive	^[7]
Michigan Alpha		Hillsdale College	Hillsdale	Michigan	US	Active
Nebraska Beta (1)	–1888	Hastings College ?	Hastings	Nebraska	US	Inactive
Indiana Alpha		Franklin College	Franklin	Indiana	US	Active
Michigan Beta		University of Michigan	Ann Arbor	Michigan	US	Active
D.C. Alpha	–1968;	George Washington University	Washington	District of Columbia	US	Active
Ohio Alpha		Ohio University	Athens	Ohio	US	Active
Minnesota Alpha	–1896;	University of Minnesota	Minneapolis	Minnesota	US	Active
Louisiana Alpha		Tulane University/Newcomb College	New Orleans	Louisiana	US	Active
New York Alpha (1) (see New York Delta)	–1893	Cornell University	Ithaca	New York	US	Reassigned
Pennsylvania Alpha	–1934	Swarthmore College	Swarthmore	Pennsylvania	US	Inactive
Indiana Beta (see Eta)		Indiana University	Bloomington	Indiana	US	Active
California Alpha	–1897; –1944;	Stanford University	Stanford	California	US	Active
Vermont Alpha	–1969	Middlebury College	Middlebury	Vermont	US	Inactive
Ohio Beta		Ohio State University	Columbus	Ohio	US	Active
Illinois Epsilon	–2021	Northwestern University	Evanston	Illinois	US	Inactive
Wisconsin Alpha	–1970;	University of Wisconsin–Madison	Madison	Wisconsin	US	Active
Pennsylvania Beta	–2013	Bucknell University	Lewisburg	Pennsylvania	US	Inactive
Nebraska Beta (2)		University of Nebraska	Lincoln	Nebraska	US	Active
Illinois Zeta		University of Illinois	Champaign–Urbana	Illinois	US	Active
New York Alpha (2)	–1984; –2013	Syracuse University	Syracuse	New York	US	Inactive
Massachusetts Alpha	–1985	Boston University	Boston	Massachusetts	US	Inactive
Maryland Alpha	–1950	Goucher College	Towson	Maryland	US	Inactive
Indiana Gamma		Butler University	Indianapolis	Indiana	US	Active
Vermont Beta		University of Vermont	Burlington	Vermont	US	Active
Missouri Alpha		University of Missouri	Columbia	Missouri	US	Active
California Beta		University of California	Berkeley	California	US	Active
Texas Alpha		University of Texas	Austin	Texas	US	Active
Pennsylvania Gamma		Dickinson College	Carlisle	Pennsylvania	US	Active
New York Beta	–1915	Barnard College (Columbia)	Manhattan	New York	US	Inactive
Washington Alpha		University of Washington	Seattle	Washington	US	Active
Missouri Beta	–2020	Washington University in St. Louis	St. Louis	Missouri	US	Inactive
Ontario Alpha		University of Toronto	Toronto	Ontario	Canada	Active
Arkansas Alpha		University of Arkansas	Fayetteville	Arkansas	US	Active
Oklahoma Alpha		University of Oklahoma	Norman	Oklahoma	US	Active
Wyoming Alpha	–2013	University of Wyoming	Laramie	Wyoming	US	Inactive
Ohio Gamma	–1913	College of Wooster	Wooster	Ohio	US	Inactive	^[8]
Illinois Eta		Millikin University	Decatur	Illinois	US	Active
Washington Beta	–2012;	Washington State University	Pullman	Washington	US	Active
Florida Alpha		Stetson University	DeLand	Florida	US	Active
Virginia Alpha	–1960	Randolph College	Lynchburg	Virginia	US	Inactive
Missouri Gamma		Drury University	Springfield	Missouri	US	Active
New York Gamma	–1993	St. Lawrence University	Canton	New York	US	Inactive
Kansas Beta		Kansas State University	Manhattan	Kansas	US	Active
Oregon Alpha		University of Oregon	Eugene	Oregon	US	Active
Nevada Alpha	–2013;	University of Nevada, Reno	Reno	Nevada	US	Active
Texas Beta		Southern Methodist University	University Park	Texas	US	Active
Virginia Beta	–1930	Hollins University	Hollins	Virginia	US	Inactive
Oregon Beta	–2006	Oregon State University	Corvallis	Oregon	US	Inactive
California Gamma		University of Southern California	Los Angeles	California	US	Active
Arizona Alpha		University of Arizona	Tucson	Arizona	US	Active
Pennsylvania Delta	–1931	University of Pittsburgh	Pittsburgh	Pennsylvania	US	Inactive	^[9]
West Virginia Alpha		West Virginia University	Morgantown	West Virginia	US	Active
New York Delta (see New York Alpha (1))		Cornell University	Ithaca	New York	US	Active
Oklahoma Beta		Oklahoma State University	Stillwater	Oklahoma	US	Active
Wisconsin Beta	–1971	Beloit College	Beloit	Wisconsin	US	Inactive
Maine Alpha		University of Maine	Orono	Maine	US	Active
Indiana Delta		Purdue University	West Lafayette	Indiana	US	Active
Montana Alpha		Montana State University	Bozeman	Montana	US	Active
North Dakota Alpha		University of North Dakota	Grand Forks	North Dakota	US	Active
Florida Beta		Florida State University	Tallahassee	Florida	US	Active
Tennessee Alpha	–1989	University of Tennessee at Chattanooga	Chattanooga	Tennessee	US	Inactive
Idaho Alpha		University of Idaho	Moscow	Idaho	US	Active
North Carolina Alpha		University of North Carolina	Chapel Hill	North Carolina	US	Active
Virginia Gamma		College of William & Mary	Williamsburg	Virginia	US	Active
Ohio Delta	–1992	Ohio Wesleyan University	Delaware	Ohio	US	Inactive
Kentucky Alpha		University of Louisville	Louisville	Kentucky	US	Active
California Delta		University of California, Los Angeles	Los Angeles	California	US	Active
South Dakota Alpha		University of South Dakota	Vermillion	South Dakota	US	Active
Alabama Alpha	–1989;	Birmingham–Southern College	Birmingham	Alabama	US	Active
Utah Alpha		University of Utah	Salt Lake City	Utah	US	Active
Florida Gamma	–1970	Rollins College	Winter Park	Florida	US	Inactive
Manitoba Alpha	–1976	University of Manitoba	Winnipeg	Manitoba	Canada	Inactive
Alberta Alpha		University of Alberta	Edmonton	Alberta	Canada	Active
South Carolina Alpha	-1985;	University of South Carolina	Columbia	South Carolina	US	Active
North Carolina Beta		Duke University	Durham	North Carolina	US	Active
Ontario Beta		University of Western Ontario	London	Ontario	Canada	Active
Nova Scotia Alpha	–1976	Dalhousie University	Halifax	Nova Scotia	Canada	Inactive
Louisiana Beta		Louisiana State University	Baton Rouge	Louisiana	US	Active
Georgia Alpha		University of Georgia	Athens	Georgia	US	Active
Wisconsin Gamma	–1983	Lawrence University	Appleton	Wisconsin	US	Inactive
Tennessee Beta		Vanderbilt University	Nashville	Tennessee	US	Active
Connecticut Alpha		University of Connecticut	Storrs	Connecticut	US	Active
Massachusetts Beta	–1973	University of Massachusetts Amherst	Amherst	Massachusetts	US	Inactive
Oregon Gamma	–2021	Willamette University	Salem	Oregon	US	Inactive
Maryland Beta	–1991	University of Maryland	College Park	Maryland	US	Inactive
Michigan Gamma		Michigan State University	East Lansing	Michigan	US	Active
Ohio Epsilon		University of Toledo	Toledo	Ohio	US	Active
Ohio Zeta	–2017	Miami University	Oxford	Ohio	US	Inactive
New Mexico Alpha		University of New Mexico	Albuquerque	New Mexico	US	Active
Illinois Theta		Bradley University	Peoria	Illinois	US	Active
Tennessee Gamma		University of Tennessee	Knoxville	Tennessee	US	Active
Washington Gamma		University of Puget Sound	Tacoma	Washington	US	Active
California Epsilon		San Diego State University	San Diego	California	US	Active
Alabama Beta		University of Alabama	Tuscaloosa	Alabama	US	Active
California Zeta		University of California, Santa Barbara	Santa Barbara	California	US	Active
West Virginia Beta	–1955	Davis & Elkins College	Elkins	West Virginia	US	Inactive
Indiana Zeta		Ball State University	Muncie	Indiana	US	Active
Texas Gamma		Texas Tech University	Lubbock	Texas	US	Active
Pennsylvania Epsilon		Pennsylvania State University	University Park	Pennsylvania	US	Active
Colorado Gamma		Colorado State University	Fort Collins	Colorado	US	Active
Ohio Eta		Denison University	Granville	Ohio	US	Active
Texas Delta		Texas Christian University	Fort Worth	Texas	US	Active
Alabama Gamma		Auburn University	Auburn	Alabama	US	Active
Michigan Delta	–1985	Albion College	Albion	Michigan	US	Inactive
Oregon Delta	–1980	Portland State University	Portland	Oregon	US	Inactive
Mississippi Alpha		University of Southern Mississippi	Hattiesburg	Mississippi	US	Active
Kentucky Beta		University of Kentucky	Lexington	Kentucky	US	Active
Mississippi Beta		University of Mississippi	Oxford	Mississippi	US	Active
Tennessee Delta		University of Memphis	Memphis	Tennessee	US	Active
Arkansas Beta	–2008	University of Arkansas at Little Rock	Little Rock	Arkansas	US	Inactive
Virginia Delta		Old Dominion University	Norfolk	Virginia	US	Active
Arizona Beta		Arizona State University	Phoenix	Arizona	US	Active
West Virginia Gamma	–1981	Bethany College	Bethany	West Virginia	US	Inactive
Florida Delta	–1977;	University of Florida	Gainesville	Florida	US	Active
New Mexico Beta	–2016	New Mexico State University	Las Cruces	New Mexico	US	Inactive
Illinois Iota	–2018	Illinois State University	Normal	Illinois	US	Inactive
California Eta	–2004	University of California, Irvine	Irvine	California	US	Active
Indiana Eta	–2004	Indiana University–Purdue University Fort Wayne	Fort Wayne	Indiana	US	Inactive
Virginia Epsilon		University of Virginia	Charlottesville	Virginia	US	Active
Texas Epsilon		University of North Texas	Denton	Texas	US	Active
Kentucky Gamma	–2017	Eastern Kentucky University	Richmond	Kentucky	US	Inactive
South Carolina Beta	–1993;	Clemson University	Clemson	South Carolina	US	Active
Texas Zeta		Baylor University	Waco	Texas	US	Active
Pennsylvania Zeta		Washington & Jefferson College	Washington	Pennsylvania	US	Active
Pennsylvania Eta		Lafayette College	Easton	Pennsylvania	US	Active
California Theta		University of California, Davis	Davis	California	US	Active
Florida Epsilon		University of Central Florida	Orange County	Florida	US	Active
Virginia Zeta		Virginia Tech	Blacksburg	Virginia	US	Active
Iowa Eta (2) (see Iowa Lambda)	–2005	Drake University	Des Moines	Iowa	US	Inactive
New York Epsilon		Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	Troy	New York	US	Active
Texas Eta		Texas A&M University	College Station	Texas	US	Active
Ohio Theta		Bowling Green State University	Bowling Green	Ohio	US	Active
Colorado Delta		Colorado School of Mines	Golden	Colorado	US	Active
New York Zeta	–1992	Colgate University	Hamilton	New York	US	Inactive
California Iota	–2005	California State University, Chico	Chico	California	US	Inactive
California Kappa		University of California, San Diego	San Diego	California	US	Active
Virginia Eta		University of Richmond	Richmond	Virginia	US	Active
California Lambda		University of California, Riverside	Riverside	California	US	Active
Ohio Iota		University of Dayton	Dayton	Ohio	US	Active
Connecticut Beta		Yale University	New Haven	Connecticut	US	Active
Pennsylvania Theta	–2018	Villanova University	Villanova	Pennsylvania	US	Inactive
New Jersey Alpha		Princeton University	Princeton	New Jersey	US	Active
Arizona Gamma		Northern Arizona University	Flagstaff	Arizona	US	Active
Wisconsin Delta		Marquette University	Milwaukee	Wisconsin	US	Active
Virginia Theta		Washington and Lee University	Lexington	Virginia	US	Active
Pennsylvania Iota	–2000	University of Pennsylvania	Philadelphia	Pennsylvania	US	Inactive	^[10]
Nebraska Gamma		Creighton University	Omaha	Nebraska	US	Active
North Carolina Gamma	–2010	Wake Forest University	Winston-Salem	North Carolina	US	Inactive
Michigan Epsilon	–2014	Western Michigan University	Kalamazoo	Michigan	US	Inactive
California Mu		Pepperdine University	Malibu	California	US	Active
Ontario Gamma		University of Guelph	Guelph	Ontario	Canada	Active
Pennsylvania Kappa		Lehigh University	Bethlehem	Pennsylvania	US	Active
Indiana Theta		Valparaiso University	Valparaiso	Indiana	US	Active
Colorado Epsilon		University of Colorado Colorado Springs	Colorado Springs	Colorado	US	Active
California Nu		Loyola Marymount University	Los Angeles	California	US	Active
North Carolina Delta		North Carolina State University	Raleigh	North Carolina	US	Active
Massachusetts Gamma		Massachusetts Institute of Technology	Cambridge	Massachusetts	US	Active
New York Eta		New York University	New York City	New York	US	Active
Mississippi Gamma		Mississippi State University	Starkville	Mississippi	US	Active
Ohio Kappa		University of Cincinnati	Cincinnati	Ohio	US	Active
Maryland Gamma		Johns Hopkins University	Baltimore	Maryland	US	Active
Connecticut Gamma	–2019; 2021	Quinnipiac University	Hamden	Connecticut	US	Active
Ohio Lambda		Case Western Reserve University	Cleveland	Ohio	US	Active
Illinois Kappa		University of Chicago	Chicago	Illinois	US	Active
Virginia Iota	–2022	George Mason University	Fairfax County	Virginia	US	Inactive
Florida Zeta	–2020	University of Tampa	Tampa	Florida	US	Inactive
California Xi		University of San Diego	San Diego	California	US	Active
California Omicron		Chapman University	Orange	California	US	Active
Georgia Beta		Emory University	Atlanta	Georgia	US	Active
Delaware Alpha		University of Delaware	Newark	Delaware	US	Active
Florida Eta		University of Miami	Coral Gables	Florida	US	Active
Wisconsin Epsilon		University of Wisconsin–Green Bay	Green Bay	Wisconsin	US	Active

Notes

I.C. Sorosis chapters

The name the Fraternity first used was I.C. Sorosis, with "Pi Beta Phi" being a motto indicated on its crest. After the 1888 Ottumwa Convention usage of these was reversed so that the fraternity would be known as Pi Beta Phi, as it is today. This choice came about, apparently, to better align with the Greek Letter model popular with other men's and women's fraternities. The naming structure for chapters was also changed by the 1888 Ottumwa Convention, adopting a "state series" model. The following table lists chapters formed under an I.C. Sorosis charter, which went dormant about the time of the adoption of the state naming system. Many were what Pi Beta Phi then called "Associate chapters", not colonies, but rather 'Community' chapters not linked to a school, or "Alumnae chapters" that did not initiate new members.^[11]

Following is a list of I.C. Sorosis chapters from before the name change, which were either Associate (~Community) chapters or Alumni chapters that did not continue among the collegiate ranks. Inactive chapters and dormant schools noted in italics.

Original name	New name	Charter date and range	Institution	City or county	State or province	Country	Status	References
Delta		–1871	Mount Pleasant Female Seminary	Mount Pleasant	Iowa	US	Consolidated
Epsilon	Indiana Epsilon	–1877;	DePauw University	Greencastle	Indiana	US	Active
Zeta	NA	–1871	Baptist Ladies’ Seminary	Indianapolis	Indiana	US	Inactive
Theta	NA	–187x ?	Illinois Wesleyan University	Bloomington	Illinois	US	Inactive
Eta	Indiana Beta	–1885	State Institute (see IU)	Bloomington	Indiana	US	Inactive
Nu (1)	NA	–1885	Clarinda, IA Community Chapter	Clarinda	Iowa	US	Inactive
Xi	NA	–1892	Iowa East Normal School	Columbus Junction	Iowa	US	Inactive	^[12]
Omicron	Iowa Delta	–1885	Burlington, IA Community Chapter	Burlington	Iowa	US	Inactive
Phi	NA	–1883	Jacksonville Female Academy	Jacksonville	Illinois	US	Inactive
Rho	NA	–1883	Dearborn Seminary	Chicago	Illinois	US	Inactive
Sigma (1)	NA	–1881	Pella College ?	Pella	Iowa	US	Inactive
Omega	NA	–1893	Des Moines, IA Community Chapter	Des Moines	Iowa	US	Inactive
Beta Omega	Iowa Eta (1)	–1890	Fairfield, IA Community Chapter	Fairfield	Iowa	US	Inactive
Sigma (2)	NA	–188x ?	Cedar Rapids, IA Community Chapter	Cedar Rapids	Iowa	US	Inactive
Lambda (2)	NA	–1886	Coe College	Cedar Rapids	Iowa	US	Inactive
Zeta Omega	Iowa Theta	–1892	Ottumwa, IA Community Chapter	Ottumwa	Iowa	US	Inactive
Delta Omega	Iowa Kappa	–1884	Iowa City, IA Community Chapter	Iowa City	Iowa	US	Inactive
Gamma Omega	Iowa Iota	–1894	Mt. Pleasant, IA Community Chapter	Mount Pleasant	Iowa	US	Inactive
Psi	NA	–1886	Cincinnati Wesleyan College ?	Cincinnati	Ohio	US	Inactive

Notes and References

1. Book: American College Fraternities . 1890 . James P. Downs . 240-243 . Baird . William Raimond . 4th . New York . en . Google Books.
2. Web site: Spring 2017 . The Arrow . 8 March 2024 . Issuu.com . Pi Beta Phi . 36-86 . PDF.
3. Web site: Carroll Lurding . Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities (Baird's Manual Online Archive), document listing Pi Beta Phi chapters . 6 March 2024 . Student Life and Culture Archives . University of Illinois Archives . English . William Raimond Baird . University of Illinois. The main archive URL is The Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage.
4. http://www.pibetaphi.org/pibetaphi/ChapterDirectory.aspx Pi Beta Phi Chapter List
5. Book: Hearts that are Bound by the Wine & Silver Blue . 2005 . Harmony House Publishers, Prospect, Kentucky, Pi Beta Phi Fraternity . 1564691241.
6. Web site: Larson . Dale Russell . Dissertation: A History of York College . University of Nebraska Teachers College . 9 March 2024 . 1966.
7. Web site: Drake submission, National Register of Historic Places . 6 March 2024 . 25 July 1988.
8. Web site: The College of Wooster GLO Situation, February 13, 1913. Dec 27, 2020.
9. Web site: University of Pittsburgh - Owl Yearbook (Pittsburgh, PA) - Class of 1921. 322.
10. http://www.library.upenn.edu/docs/kislak/dp/1992/1992_10_06.pdf The Daily Pennsylvanian October 6, 1992
11. Book: Spring . Agnes Wright . Pi Phi History 1936 . February 1936 . Pi Beta Phi . Vol 52, No. 3 - part 1 . 23 March 2024.
12. Web site: The Iowa Normal Monthly, August 1886, Vol. X, No. 1 . Hatha Trust . 4 March 2024 . 38 .