Our Purpose
With roots spanning over 100 years, Phi Iota Alpha is a national fraternity
that sets itself apart from other organizations through its history and
commitment to individual development, leadership, team work and cultural
awareness. Established
Our
Foundation
As an organization whose roots stem back to the late 1800s, we cherish and live
by the ideals set forth by our forefathers. Our organization prides itself in
the ability to motivate people, develop leaders, and create new ways to unite
our community. We challenge ourselves in supporting and developing a strong
network for the advancement of our people. To this end, each member swears
loyalty not only to himself but also to a greater cause, his people and
The history of Phi Iota Alpha is the history of all Latino college students and
professionals who strive to maintain their intellectual heritage alive. Since
its inception, when the legendary "Union Hispano Americana" (UHA) was
first organized in 1898, the fraternity has upheld its sublime and unique
ideological foundation of Pan-Americanism. The ideology of Pan-Americanism can
be summarized as the "unification of all the Latin American nations and
all Latin American people." The Fraternity has served as an "
Through the years, this prestigious institution has witnessed a number of
operational and structural modifications as a form of survival and adaptation to
its time. Through it all, Phi Iota Alpha continues to fulfill its distinct
goals by uniting its members fraternally in a manner in which, individually and
collectively, they will contribute towards the fulfillment of the
organization's mission and ideology; fomenting "the scientific study of
the social, economical, and political problems of Pan-America;" and
serving "as a source of personal growth in which in conjunction with
academic preparation, each brother will find an appropriate environment to
develop." In short, Phi Iota Alpha has always been, and will continue to
be, a source of empowerment for Latinos everywhere.
The First Latino Student Organization
The roots of Phi Iota Alpha were implanted at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI),
In the northeastern part of the
First, Pi Delta Phi established communication with Phi Lambda Alpha Fraternity,
which had been recently founded in 1919 at the
Meanwhile, in the southern part of the
Phi
Iota Alpha is Born
On December of 1931, the most profound historical event
in the history of Latino fraternities took place in
On December 26, 1931, the first day of a three-day convention, Phi Iota Alpha was
born as both groups agreed on the merger contract to unify under one name, one
banner, one organization and one ideal. The next day of business was dedicated
to preparing the details of revising the constitution, working on the creation
of a shield to represent the newly formed national Latino brotherhood, and
internal rules and regulations documents. On December 28th, by the end of the
three-day convention, most of the merger was completed. Now the last step in
the merger was the ratification of some of the chapters of Sigma Iota that were
not represented at the convention.
A
Changing World
Since that historical unification, Phi Iota Alpha expanded nationally as well
as internationally. At the international level, the Fraternity sponsored the
1932 convention in the city of
This union proved efficient in setting forth the ideology of
Pan-Americanism since most of the zones actively and diligently participated in
the name of the ideals. By 1937, the ULA had several well-established and
functional zones including: Phi Kappa Alpha in
It was not until 1945, the outbreak of World War II, that the expansion rate
was significantly reduced for Phi Iota Alpha in the
The 1960's proved to be very challenging years for Phi Iota Alpha and all
Latinos in general. The effects of a World War II, the Vietnam War, and the
"Me" generation resulted in an anti-institutional atmosphere amongst
many college students. In addition, this drastically reduced the influx of
Latin American students into American universities which hindered potential
members. As a result, by 1968, after many years of struggling to adapt to its
time, the only active undergraduate chapter at RPI closed the doors of their
chapter house. By 1973, the last active Secretary General graduated from RPI,
taking with him the Fraternity's official documents and archives. From 1973 to
1983, the Fraternity witnessed a period of inactivity at the undergraduate
level. Some efforts were made to re-establish Phi Iota Alpha but these efforts
did not bear any fruit. Throughout this period, brothers continued to maintain
communication, as well as to accomplishing the mission of the organization. The
history, ideals and goals of the Fraternity never diminished. It simply did not
have active undergraduate members to cultivate them. Phi Iota Alpha continued
to exist within the hearts of many graduate members as they continued to
develop their professional lives mostly in Latin American countries and in the
The
Lion's Awakening
In 1984, a group of determined young men at RPI, upon
learning about the Latino empowerment and culture that once existed on their
campus, took the challenge of reviving the spirit of Phi Iota Alpha. In doing
so, these courageous young men became the new generation of Phi Iota Alpha.
Briefly after the re-establishment of the Fraternity, in an extraordinary
session, the last Secretary General instituted the
members of the RPI chapter as the Alpha Chapter. In the 1980's the Fraternity
dedicated its efforts to rebuilding the organizational infrastructure and to
expand to several universities in
The Lion's Reawakening
Recent History
The Fraternity has been significantly improved and slightly modified to insure
its proper functioning and survival well into the 21st century. In 1994, the
Fraternity was further improved, as a modified version of "Proposito 21" was accepted and implemented as a set of
operational guiding principles, which are still in effect today. The "Proposito" facilitated both the modified
organizational infrastructure and a constitutional revision to optimize the
Fraternity system.
As of 1996, the Fraternity was looking into the future challenges of the 21st
century and adjusted its long-term planning strategies to insure the proper
development of the Fraternity beyond the closing of the millennium.
Furthermore, by 1997, the Fraternity had four solidly organized Alumni
Chapters. By 1998, with a fortified constitution and an operations manual, the
Fraternity was duly prepared to begin expansion plans. By the end of 1999, the
Fraternity had dramatically grown to triple its size in chapters since 1991.
These chapters included active regions in
Today, Phi Iota Alpha commemorates its long history. It is the commemoration of
the organization of the UHA as well as the merging of Sigma Iota and Phi Lambda
Alpha. Phi Iota Alpha also commemorates the grandiose formation of the ULA, the
implementation of the "Universidad Ideologica"
the re-foundation and the re-establishment of the organization from the East
coast to the West coast. Yet, the Fraternity has had to overcome many obstacles
to claim its long and arduous history. As the Fraternity continues to plan for
the future, it is of utmost importance to remember that this history was made
by men of great vision, leadership, devotion, persistence and most importantly,
commitment to the improvement of our "Raza, Joven, Noble y Guerrera."
Chapters Pictures Brothers Membership