Tau Phi Sigma

Tau Phi Sigma, (ΤΦΣ), is a multicultural service-oriented college fraternity, founded in 1992 at the campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Tau Phi Sigma
ΤΦΣ
Founded	November 11, 1992; 32 years ago (1992-11-11) University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign
Type	Social
Former affiliation	NIC
Status	Active
Emphasis	Multicultural
Scope	Regional
Motto	Como Humanos Siempre Unidos, Como Hermanos Jamas Vencidos ("As Humans Always United, As Brothers Never Defeated")
Pillars	Equality, Respect, Unity, Loyalty, and Pride
Colors	Navy Blue   Silver
Flower	Don Juan Rose
Mascot	Gryphon
Publication	Gryphon Gazette
Philanthropy	Fight 4 Life Initiative
Chapters	6
Nickname	Tau Phi’s and G-Men
Headquarters	Chicago, Illinois United States

History

Tau Phi Sigma is a multicultural college fraternity, founded on November 11, 1992, at the campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.^[1]

It was established by thirteen students attending the university who were unable to find a fraternity that satisfied their ideals of brotherhood.^[2] They intended to create a brotherhood that would encompass all ethnicities and backgrounds and make men of good character, which would manifest itself in attaining a higher education, providing service to the community, and promoting social and cultural awareness.^[2]

The founding fathers were:

• Arturo Alvarez
• Jose Juan Alvarez
• Ceasar Arenas
• Francisco Avila
• Jorge Covarrubias
• Jose Luis Del Real
• Mario Del Real
• Guadalupe Odilon Diaz
• Juan Leonardo Muñoz
• Juan Pablo Diaz
• Salvador Jaime Garcia
• Carlos Haro
• Vernan Paul Ituralde
• Efrain Lazaro
• Elmer Martinez
• Javier Alberto Ordaz

On May 1, 1993, the first seventeen members of a fraternity they named Sigma Tau Phi emerged.^[2]

Another national fraternity had used the same name as early as 1918. As that group had merged into another NIC fraternity and was still known by them as a predecessor group, the new multicultural group at Illinois opted early to change its name from Sigma Tau Phi to Tau Phi Sigma to avoid any confusion.^[a]

Since then, the fraternity has expanded to eight collegiate chapters and two alumni chapters in the Midwest. Its first alumni chapter, the Illinois Alumni chapter, was established on March 1, 2009.^[3] Its national headquarters are in Chicago, Illinois.^[3]

Symbols

The fraternity's public or open motto is Como Humanos Siempre Unidos, Como Hermanos Jamas Vencidos or "As Humans Always United, As Brothers Never Defeated".^[2] Its principles or pillars are Equality, Respect, Unity, Loyalty, and Pride.

The fraternity's colors are navy blue and silver.^[2] Its mascot is the griffin.^[2] Its flower is the Don Juan rose.^[2] Its nicknames are Tau Phi’s and G-Men.^[2]

Philanthropy

Tau Phi Sigma is a service-oriented fraternity. To further research and development of major diseases such as cancer, diabetes, epilepsy and cardiologic conditions Tau Phi Sigma established the Fight 4 Life Initiative as its national philanthropy to support the following organizations: American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Association, American Epilepsy Society, and the American Heart Association,

Chapters

In the following list, active chapters are indicated in bold and inactive chapters are in italics.^[3]

Chapter	Charter date and range	Institutions	Location	Status	References
Alpha	November 11, 1992 – 2020	University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign	Champaign and Urbana, Illinois	Inactive	[4]
Beta	February 17, 1996	University of Illinois at Chicago, Dominican University	Chicago, Illinois	Active	[5]
Gamma	July 26, 1997	Purdue University	West Lafayette, Indiana	Active	[6]
Delta	September 12, 1997	DePaul University	Chicago, Illinois	Active
Epsilon	February 14, 1998	Northern Illinois University	Dekalb, Illinois	Inactive	[7]
Eta	June 13, 2009	Purdue University Northwest	Hammond, Indiana	Active
Zeta colony		Indianapolis Citywide	Indianapolis, Indiana	Inactive	[b]
Theta colony		Chicago State University	Chicago, Illinois	Active	[c]
Omega				Memorial

See also

• List of social fraternities
• Cultural interest fraternities and sororities

Notes

1. This was Sigma Tau Phi, which merged its seven chapters into Alpha Epsilon Pi in 1947. Similar situations arose with many fraternities over the years, as popular combinations of letters were tried, and often adjusted.
2. Colony was established on January 31st, 2009. However, it went inactive before being chartered.
3. Colony was established on August 28, 2009.