i just noticed costalpike put up the numbers but here is where they are from plus alittle of my looking into the numbers

From http://www.pikes.org/sd/recruitmentreport.html

After a renewed emphasis on recruitment over the past year, Pi Kappa Alpha is celebrating one of the Fraternity’s most successful recruitment periods in history. During the 2003-04 academic year, Pike chapters and colonies signed 5,567 pledges and 4,582 initiations, resulting in a 9.5% and 8.6% increase respectively.

With initiation rate on pledges of 82.3%




Pledgings Initiations
PiKA 5,567 4,582
KS 5,309 3,783

If you add the kappa sigma numbers thats only a 71.3% initiation rate. this could also be due to the colonies that are still in their colonization phase but PiKA still has more numbers as well as initiations. I give the huge 32% increase to the 19 colonies they are beginning. Still good numbers. Congrats to the Kappa Sigma Fraternity.

Congrats to Kappa Sig on their great growth. My second cousin and housemate is a KS although his chapter just got shut down a year ago...from his experience, he felt that their fraternity staff ditched out on them in order establish colonies instead. There obviously is a flip side to this amazing growth, and it seems to be - at least in my cousins case - that existing chapters are left to die if they aren't holding it together.

That's not to dog on KS like others, but growth and increase in members is nothing unless they are contributing to the campus...

Maybe it's just me, but I'd prefer to hear that fraternities were keeping men pledged AND initiated in school, making their GPA's better, providing them with the opportunities to serve, and setting them up to be principled members of society. In the end, it is the quality of action of the members of a society that bring it honor and success, not the number of men a society boasts. I think that is pretty self-evident and undebatable.

Just curious...what does this mean??? Does TKE and Sig Ep have a lot of members/chapters??? I'm not up on who are the largest in terms of active members/chapters nationwide-I always thought that it was Sigma Chi or SAE's. Thanks...

He is meaning that TKE has some 300+ chapters that have been colonized but only 240+ active, meaning alot of silent chapters with a dismal future of recolonization. and the same with Sig Ep though their numbers colonized is less(maybe 280) but number of active chapters is similar, something like 240. He is Saying something like "Congrats on being a national fraternity just looking at numbers of chapters you have and not on quality of men or chapter strength."

Sigma Chi and SAE are definately near the top but when it comes to number of active chapters to number colonized and are now silent i am not sure the exact for them. Though i am sure they are similar just like most of the large National fraternities.

In terms of overall number of initiates aren't TKE and SAE at the top?

Largest Fraternities
 

I've seen several fraternities claiming they are "the biggest." My assumptions for their claims are in parenthesis:

TKE (most chapters)
Sig Ep (most undergrads, largest avg. chapter size of "nat'l" fraternities)
Pike (largest avg. chapter size of "int'l" fraternities)
SAE (most initiated members)

Oh yeah, then you have the fastest growing fraternities. By what measurement, I have no idea.

What fraternities have reached 250,000 initiates? I know SAE and Sig Ep have, and there are several that should be close.

I think TKE has over 280,000, Sigma Chi around 270,000, and Lambda Chi Alpha is right around 250,000.

If I'm way off on any of those numbers someone please jump in and correct me on them.

Re: Largest Fraternities
 

As of 2003, Phi Psi has the largest average chapter size of any men's fraternity.

Largest average chapter size
 

I would love to see where you got the info saying phi psi has the largest average chapter size? Pike has had it almost every year since the 80's. I think Sigep might have gotten it one year.

Re: Largest average chapter size
 

From my Executive Director, who announced it at our last convention. He got that information from the NIC.

ETA I just checked the Pike website, and the page that boasts acheivements doesn't mention "largest average chapter size." http://www.pka.org/wfacts.html

Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics
 

While we're having fun with numbers (which can be twisted a trillion different ways,) I'll throw in my specious argument, based on numbers, for why FKY is the most successful fraternity.

Largest Endowment Fund: FKY (over $18 million and now ahead of Sigma Chi)
Largest Endowment Fund on a per chapter basis: FKY
Largest Endowment Fund on a per capita basis: FKY

We also have a Permanent Fund, which most fraternities don't have. Its assets are over $3 million, and its dedicated to providing non-restricted revenue for our Fraternity.

So if success is measured in $$$, then FKY is the most successful fraternity ever.

Re: Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics
 

You also have that nifty leadership site.

Re: Re: Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics
 

Ah yes. The Cabo Alpha Leadership Academy

http://tinypic.com/b93bq

Sorry to say, KS wasn't doing so hot at my alma mater around the time I left. Too bad, it is generally pretty embarassing to let a chapter die at Illinois.

Way to go Brother Russ!!! I knew that I joined the right group way back when!

Amici...Usque...Adaras...

Steve...

California Beta, '83