Delta Phi Epsilon (professional)

Delta Phi Epsilon or Delta Phi Epsilon Foreign Service Council the largest national American professional foreign service fraternity and sorority. Founded on January 25, 1920, it was the first fraternity dedicated to careers in foreign diplomacy and trade. Its Alpha chapter went on in the first half of the twentieth century to colonize new chapters at many other universities throughout the country. However, most chapters went defunct in the latter half of the century. In 1973, Delta Phi Epsilon Foreign Service Sorority was founded, with its Alpha chapter at Georgetown University. As of 2021, there remained ten active collegiate chapters, half of which were created between 2016 and 2018.

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History

Fraternity

The fraternity was founded in the wake of World War I, at a time of heightened interest in world politics and in solving global issues through diplomacy. In 1919, Fr. Edmund A. Walsh, S.J. at Georgetown University founded the School of Foreign Service and in 1924, the Rogers Act formed the basis of the United States Foreign Service. During this time, other groups with similar missions, such as the Council on Foreign Relations, were founded, along with international bodies such as the League of Nations.
The four founders of the fraternity were Alfred O. Arseneau, Wesley O. Ash, Samuel C. Bartlett, and T. J. Patrick O'Connell. At first, three of them, all undergraduates in Georgetown's SFS living together on 10th Street, held in common only their experience in overseas military service and their interest in foreign service careers. Soon, they met the fourth, Pat O'Connell, who thought of founding a foreign service fraternity independently. They were drawn together by their common vision for a professional foreign service fraternity for future graduates of the School of Foreign Service and others in the field.
Later, these men joined with seven other interested undergraduates and signed the Articles of Agreement. After choosing a name and nominating officers, Delta Phi Epsilon Foreign Service Fraternity was formally founded at the Catholic Community House at 6th and E Streets, NW, on January 25, 1920. The group was incorporated in the District of Columbia on April 20, 1920. Early expansion focused on both East and West Coast schools. The fraternity's activities and expansion ceased during World War II.
After the war, the fraternity saw even greater expansion into institutions across the United States. By the 1960s, the fraternity began to see a decline in the number of its chapters. During the 1970s most of the fraternity's collegiate chapters went inactive, leaving only the original Alpha. This decline is attributed to two major factors: a national decline in professional fraternities and a negative perception generally of foreign service. During the Vietnam War, foreign service was closely associated in many minds with current United States foreign policy, which was protested against at many member institutions.
After some attempts during the 1990s, several of these defunct chapters were revived in the 2000s. The Alpha chapter at Georgetown University went defunct but was revived in 1990 after ten years of inactivity and revived again in 1998 after another five years of inactivity. In the summer of 2003, the first reactivation of an inactive chapter, the Epsilon chapter at UC Berkeley, occurred. In 2016, the first co-ed chapter, the Delta chapter, was founded at USC by Jacob Lokshin and eleven other USC students. This was soon followed by the creation of Pi, Psi, Chi, Eta, Gamma, and Mu chapters.
The Alpha chapter was the longest-lived collegiate chapter of Delta Phi Epsilon; its undergraduate officers all resigned in 2018 and suspended all chapter activities in protest of the actions of national leadership. The chapter has three successive one-person initiations over the succeeding eighteen months. In late February 2020, Alpha initiated the chapter's 200th line of ten initiates, just before the fraternity's 100th Founders' Day Banquet.

Sorority

In the 1950s, some members suggested that the fraternity accept women. Gregory Creutz, national general secretary, led the way to a compromise. In 1956 the National Board of Directors of the fraternity created the Delta Phi Epsilon International Society of Business and Foreign Affairs which was to be open to both men and women. However, that society failed to develop,
Another movement to make the fraternity coed emerged in the late 1960s. During the 1972 National Convention, members voted to amend the bylaws to admit female members. However, the amendment ultimately failed because the members did not approve it a second time at either of the next two conventions.
In June 1972, the Alpha chapter at Georgetown changed to include both a fraternity and a sorority of the Delta Phi Epsilon Professional Foreign Service. The two groups operated separately when it came to recruiting and initiating members. However, the two groups worked together for professional and social programs.
The Alpha chapter of the sorority held its first initiation on February 24, 1973. A second chapter of the sorority, the Epsilon chapter, was founded at UC Berkeley in 2003.
In January 2021, the American University chapter withdrew from the national organization, saying that the national board "was unrepresentative of its values." The group continued as the local organization Sisterhood for International Engagement.

Co-educational

In 2016, the fraternity's National Convention endorsed a proposal for joint fraternity-sorority projects, including publishing a peer-reviewed Delta Phi Epsilon Journal of Foreign Affairs, operating a scholarship competition for students who had been initiated into Delta Phi Epsilon, and holding an annual symposium promoting alumni and student international relations research. This project developed into the, incorporated and recognized as a 501 nonprofit educational organization in 2016. The council originally selected its leaders from Delta Phi Epsilon members to support international relations education, promote public engagement in foreign policy, and provide career development tools to Delta Phi Epsilon brothers and sisters.
In 2016, the first co-ed chapter, the Delta chapter, was founded at the University of Southern California by Jacob Lokshin and eleven other USC students. The Gamma chapter also merged the sorority and fraternity into a single co-ed chapter in 2016. However, some of the national fraternity's leadership continue to oppose the admission of women.

Symbols

Delta Phi Epsilon's motto is λατρεύω or "I Serve". Its colors are black and gold. Its flower is the morning glory.

Chapter house

The fraternity purchased the former Seymour House in Georgetown as a chapter house for $27,500 in 1940. Constructed in 1869 by merchant William E. Seymour, 3401 Prospect Street Northwest was home to the Alpha chapter until 2020. The three-story brick chapter house had fifteen rooms. It is a contributing property to the Georgetown Historic District and became a National Historic Landmark listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1967. For decades, the Alpha chapter of Delta Phi Epsilon was the only fraternal organization at Georgetown University with its own house. It was used for keg parties and social events.
During the February 2020 annual meeting of Delta Phi Epsilon, its members voted to sell 3401 Prospect Street for as much money as possible. The Alpha chapter's historic house purportedly had to be sold because it was believed that Georgetown University implemented a rule requiring undergraduates to live on campus for four years. A new house might be purchased by the foundation, not the fraternity or the Delta Phi Epsilon corporation. It would be based on a clubhouse model and would be owned by the foundation. It would not be a boarding house and would not be owned by the Delta Phi Epsilon corporation, which had owned 3401 Prospect Street.

Membership

The fraternity initiates Line Brothers, those who pledge when they are students, and National Brothers, mostly those already out of school who only go through the required final initiation ritualistic ceremonies.

Organizational structure

Several distinct and separate corporations use the name Delta Phi Epsilon. Delta Phi Epsilon, Incorporated is a 501 nonprofit corporation. This corporation is a member-based nonprofit corporation. Its board is self-appointed, with sitting board members selecting replacements as seats become vacant. The Delta Phi Epsilon Foundation for Foreign Service Education is a 501 nonprofit organization established in 1960. Its purpose is to give scholarships to students.

Chapters

In the following list, active chapters are listed in bold and inactive chapters are in italics.

Chapter	Charter date and range	Institution	Location	Gender	Status
Alpha	– 1980; 1981–198x ?; 1990–1993; 1996	Walsh School of Foreign Service	Washington, D.C.	Male	Active?
Alpha	1973–1981; 1990–1996; 1998	Walsh School of Foreign Service	Washington, D.C.	Female	Active
Beta	– 1966; 2009–2xxx ?	New York University Stern School of Business	New York City, New York	Male	Inactive
Gamma	–1933; 1993–1996; 2016	Boston University Pardee School of Global Studies	Boston, Massachusetts	Co-ed	Active
Gamma	1994–199x ?	Boston University	Boston, Massachusetts	Female	Consolidated
Delta	– 1974; 2016	USC School of International Relations	Los Angeles, California	Co-ed	Active
Epsilon	– 19xx ?; 1960–1973; 2003	Haas School of Business	Berkeley, California	Co-ed	Active
Epsilon	1999–19xx ?; 2003–20xx ?	Haas School of Business	Berkeley, California	Female	Consolidated
Zeta	– 19xx ?	University of Detroit Mercy	Detroit, Michigan	Male	Inactive
Eta	– 1943; 1944–1955; 1964–1969; 2004–20xx ?; 2023	Elliott School of International Affairs	Washington, D.C.	Co-Ed	Active
Eta		Elliott School of International Affairs	Washington, D.C.	Female	Inactive
Theta	– 197x ?	Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management	Evanston, Illinois	Male	Inactive
Iota Prime	– 194x ?	University of Wisconsin–Madison	Madison, Wisconsin	Male	Inactive
Iota	–197x ?	Wayne State University	Detroit, Michigan	Male	Inactive
Kappa	– 197x ?	Leland Stanford Junior University	Palo Alto, California	Male	Inactive
Lambda	– 197x ?	Thunderbird School of Global Management	Phoenix, Arizona	Male	Inactive
Lambda	197x ?–1994	Thunderbird School of Global Management	Phoenix, Arizona	Female	Inactive
Mu	– 197x ?; 2017–20xx ?	Michigan State University	East Lansing, Michigan	Male	Inactive
Mu		Michigan State University	East Lansing, Michigan	Female	Active
Nu	– 197x ?	University of Michigan	Ann Arbor, Michigan	Male	Inactive
Xi	– 197x ?	Texas Tech University	Lubbock, Texas	Male	Inactive
Xi	197x ?–1994	Texas Tech University	Lubbock, Texas	Female	Inactive
Omicron	– 197x ?; 1992–xxxx ?	Occidental College	Los Angeles, California	Male	Inactive
Omicron	–1993	Occidental College	Los Angeles, California	Female	Inactive
Pi	– 197x ?; 2016	American University School of International Service	Washington, D.C.	Male	Active
Pi	–2021	American University School of International Service	Washington, D.C.	Female	Withdrew
Rho	– 197x ?	California State University, Los Angeles	Los Angeles, California	Male	Inactive
Rho	19xx ?–199x ?	California State University, Los Angeles	Los Angeles, California	Female	Inactive
Sigma	– 197x ?	Pepperdine University	Los Angeles, California	Male	Inactive
Sigma	–197x ?	Pepperdine University	Los Angeles, California	Female	Inactive
Tau	– 197x ?	Loyola Marymount University	Los Angeles, California	Male	Inactive
Tau	–197x ?	Loyola Marymount University	Los Angeles, California	Female	Inactive
Upsilon	– 197x ?	Arizona State University	Tempe, Arizona	Male	Inactive
Upsilon	–197x ?	Arizona State University	Tempe, Arizona	Female	Inactive
Phi	– 197x ?	University of South Carolina	Columbia, South Carolina	Male	Inactive
Phi	–197x ?	University of South Carolina	Columbia, South Carolina	Female	Inactive
Chi		James Madison University	Harrisonburg, Virginia	Co-ed	Active
Psi	– 20xx ?; 2017	University of the Pacific	Stockton, California	Male	Active
Psi		University of the Pacific	Stockton, California	Female	Active
Omega	– 197x ?	Southern Methodist University	Dallas, Texas	Male	Inactive
Omega	–197x ?	Southern Methodist University	Dallas, Texas	Female	Inactive
Beta Alpha	–197x ?	Wayne State University	Detroit, Michigan	Male	Inactive

Notable members

Following are some of the notable members of Delta Phi Epsilon.

Name	Chapter	Year	Type	Notability
Diego C. Asencio	Alpha	1950	Line	U.S. Ambassador to Colombia, U.S. Ambassador to Brazil
Robert Barr	Delta	1970	Line	United States House of Representatives
Derek C. Bok	Kappa	1950	Line	President of Harvard University and dean of Harvard Law School
St. Clair Bourne	Alpha	1962	Line	Documentary filmmaker
Charles A. Coulombe	Alpha	2004	National	Historian, author, journalist, and lecturer
William S. Culbertson	Alpha	1920	National	U.S. Ambassador to Romania, U.S. Ambassador to Chile
Roderic H. Davison	Eta	1948	National	Professor of government at George Washington University
Walt Disney	Delta	1950	National	Film director, producer, screenwriter, voice actor, and animator
James F. Dobbins	Alpha	1960	Line	U.S. Ambassador to the European Union
Lev Dobriansky	Alpha	1968	National	U.S. Ambassador to the Bahamas, Georgetown University professor
Thomas J. Dodd Jr.	Alpha	1972	National	U.S. Ambassador to Uruguay, U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica
Walter J. Donnelly	Alpha	1920	Line	U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica, U.S. Ambassador to Venezuela, U.S. Ambassador to Austria
Don C. Faith Jr.	Alpha	1938	Line	Officer in the United States Army, Medal of Honor recipient
Evan G. Galbraith	Alpha	1994	National	U.S. Ambassador to France
Edward "Skip" Gnehm	Eta	1964	Line	U.S. Ambassador to Kuwait, U.S. Ambassador to Australia, U.S. Ambassador to Jordan
H. Allen Holmes	Alpha	2007	National	U.S. Ambassador to Portugal
George R. Houston Jr.	Alpha	1964	National	President of Mount St. Mary's University, professor at Georgetown University
Eric G. John	Alpha	1978	Line	U.S. Ambassador to Thailand
Jan Karski	Alpha	1964	National	Georgetown University professor, Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient
Thomas M. King	Alpha	2005	National	Professor of theology at Georgetown University
William Knowland	Alpha	1951	National	United States Senate
Evan Kohlmann	Alpha	1998	Line	Founder CEO of Cloudburst Technologies
Frank Lavin	Alpha	1975	Line	U.S. Ambassador to Singapore
Edward B. Lawson	Alpha	1924	Line	U.S. Ambassador to Iceland, U.S. Ambassador to Israel
Paul M. A. Linebarger	Alpha	1953	National	author
Raymond P. Ludden	Alpha	1928	Line	China expert for the U.S. State Department
Douglas MacArthur II	Alpha	1956	National	U.S. Ambassador to Japan, U.S. Ambassador to Belgium, U.S. Ambassador to Austria, U.S. Ambassador to Iran
Thaddeus M. Machrowicz	Alpha	1959	National	U.S. House of Representatives; Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
Philip W. Manhard	Delta	1942	Line	U.S. Ambassador to Mauritius
Jesse A. Mann	Alpha	1966	National	Dean of the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University
Grady Louis McMurtry	Epsilon	1954	Line	Occultist and revivor of Ordo Templi Orientis
Nicholas Onuf	Alpha	1967	National	Professor emeritus of international relations at Florida International University
Donald Lawrence O'Toole	Alpha	1951	National	U.S. House of Representatives
Ibrahim Oweiss	Alpha	1968	National	Professor of economics emeritus at Georgetown University
Samuel Potolicchio	Alpha	2015	National	director of global and custom education at McCourt School of Public Policy, Georgetown University
Earl Ravenal	Alpha	1994	National	Professor at Georgetown University
Christopher R. Reich	Alpha	1979	Line	novelist
Claude G. Ross	Delta	1938	Line	U.S. Ambassador to Central African Republic, U.S. Ambassador to Haïti, U.S. Ambassador to Tanzania
Abdul Aziz Said	Pi	1967	National	professor in the School of International Service at American University
Harry Sandager	Alpha	1920	Line	U.S. Representative from Rhode Island
Robert A. Scalapin	Epsilon	1950	National	professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley
Howard B. Schaffer	Alpha	2005	National	U.S. Ambassador to Bangladesh, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
Ken Starr	Eta	1967	Line	Solicitor General of the United States
Mark von Hagen	Alpha	1972	Line	Professor of history at Arizona State University
Rufus B. von KleinSmid	Delta	1923	Line	President of the University of Arizona, chancellor of the University of Southern California
John Wood	Alpha	1996	National	Chancellor of the University of Canterbury, deputy secretary of foreign affairs of New Zealand, New Zealand Ambassador to the United States

Member misconduct

Scandals

In July 2018, The Chronicle of Higher Education published several accounts of student and alumni fraternity members accusing Terrence Boyle of sexism and bigotry. Boyle has served as the fraternity's general secretary for nearly 40 years, controlled the alumni newsletter, and oversaw pledge recruitment for the Alpha chapter. Charges included making the sorority members clean the bedrooms and wash the socks of the fraternity members. In addition, no females had held national leadership positions. In the article and in a petition shortly following it, leaders from most fraternity chapters, along with many non-DPE Fraternity members, called for Boyle's resignation. In August 2018, the Alpha chapter officers resigned and closed the chapter's activities after Georgetown University's student newspaper, The Hoya, published an opinion piece authored by presidents of Eta, Chi, and Pi chapters calling for Georgetown students to boycott Alpha chapter. Boyle appointed new student leadership for the Alpha chapter from outside of Georgetown; however, several of the fraternity's other chapters indicated that they would not recognize this new leadership.

D.C. attorney general litigation

On June 1, 2020, Terrence J. Boyle, the treasurer of DPE, Inc., donated Alpha House to a separate corporation named the Delta Phi Epsilon Foundation for Foreign Service Education. In 2021, the District of Columbia attorney general, Karl Racine, filed a case against Boyle, the Foundation for Foreign Service Education, and the Delta Phi Epsilon corporation. The complaint alleged that Boyle unlawfully used charitable funds belonging to the foundation to buy a house on 34th Street NW in 1990. In addition, Boyle sold the fraternity's chapter house for $2.6 million when it was appraised for $4 million. Boyle, the and Matthew W. Schmidt, the president of DPE, secretly transferred ownership of the fraternity house from the fraternity to the foundation.
Journalists Fredrick Kunkle and Jonetta Rose Barras published several articles about the scandals. In January 2022, Brian Schwalb became the second elected Attorney General of the District of Columbia. In April 2022, the Office of the Attorney General filed a motion for summary judgment in the case. In September 2021, the D.C. Superior Court issued an Order for Partial Summary Judgment. The court ruled that the defendants breached their fiduciary duties. The Order was signed by D.C. Superior Court Judge, Judge Shana Frost Matini.
On November 30, 2023, the D.C. Office of the Attorney General and the three defendants signed a consent judgment, which was approved by the D.C. Superior Court, requiring Boyleto make a restitution payment in the amount of $100,000. Boyle was barred from being an officer, director, trustee, or employee of any nonprofit organizations operating in the District of Columbia for ten years. Schmidt was barred from being a director of DPE in the future.