Pi Kappa Alpha - University of Texas

www.texaspike.com 4 T exas Pikes are celebrating the fraternity's centennial this semester by enjoying the new Pike chapter house and creatively pivoting with changes across The Forty Acres required by the pandemic. We are pleased to welcome a new pledge class of 33 men hailing from Texas towns like Bedford, Corpus Christi, Dallas, Fort Worth, Frisco, Houston, Prosper and Sherman. Out-of-state new members come from Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana and Maryland. Beginning last spring break, the COVID-19 virus disrupted classes and required numerous adjustments to fraternity activities in spring and summer 2020. While Pikes are becoming accustomed to online classes, the chapter's usual mix of academic, brotherhood, service and social events is taking place—albeit in a careful, cautious, restrained manner. Pikes are extremely grateful to the brave medical professionals and first responders for keeping Austin and our home communities safe in this challenging time. Fortunately, the Pike family has remained largely safe during the national emergency and we wish everyone good health as the nation continues the battle this virus. Pikes are greatly appreciative to alumni donors for making the new Pike chapter house a reality. The chapter is greatly enjoying the house as the centerpiece of Texas Pike's centennial year on The Forty Acres. While the chapter is disappointed, as are our alumni, that the planned August 22 grand opening reception was postponed, we are already making many memories with the modern, state-of-the- art fraternity house. We are proud of 100 uninterrupted years of brotherhood and service in the UT Austin community and invite Pike alumni to drop by for a visit when in Austin. We are proud of our academic performance as a chapter. Our fall 2019 pledges ranked sixth out of 20 fraternity pledge classes with a combined GPA of 3.43. Actives, with a 3.31 GPA, were ranked 12th out of 23 fraternities, in a cadre of eight fraternities carding 3.3s. The top overall fraternity boasted a 3.46 GPA, which we hope to overtake next year! Pike proudly engages in community service projects in Austin and on The Forty Acres. In recent school years, Pikes have volunteered at the Capital Area Food Bank and, for several years running, staffed a Boy Scout corporate skeet shoot fundraiser. We participated in the Texas Interfraternity Council's Movember men's cancer research project. In spring 2020, our men joined a Texas Exes project where we repainted and performed yard work for a Baptist Church in a distressed Austin neighborhood. Also last spring we delivered a barbecue lunch to 25 UT Austin police officers in the midst of the pandemic. The International Pike Fraternity held a virtual summer awards program in lieu of the planned July 2020 Las Vegas convention. Beta Mu Chapter received numerous awards, including the Orians Chapter Excellence Award for the seventh successive year. This award is given to only 20 top-performing national chapters. We also earned the Pike Scholarship Award and Pike University Award. Our Alumni Advisory Board was recognized as one of the top 20 national operating boards for the seventh consecutive year. While we are extremely mindful of COVID- 19 and have implemented protocols to maintain the chapter house, we look forward to a semester of allowable fraternity activities focused on brotherhood, academics, athletics, philanthropy, campus participation and a limited or retrained social calendar. In 2020, Beta Mu celebrates our 100th year of continuous operation at the University of Texas. There has never been a time to have more pride in being an active member or alumnus of Pi Kappa Alpha! Yours in phi phi ka, Richard Sherwood '17 Chapter President president@texaspike.com BETA MU'S SECOND CENTURY Beta Mu Chapter Working Thoughtfully Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic Beta Mu's chapter officers: Secretary Grant Hiskes '19, Co-Social Chairman Connor Laird '18, Treasurer Austin Spingarn '17, Sergeant-at-Arms Jack Roberts '18, President Richard Sherwood '17, Risk Chairman Michael Brill '18, Internal Vice President Nathan McDermid '18, Member Development Vice President Andre Schillaci '17, External Vice President Greg Taylor '18 and Co-Social Chairman Max Gaynor '19.

• Cover