Pictured at left is our 111th Anniversary logo, which notes that 111 years is "the road traveled thus far" -- which indicates that our brotherhood has many, many more years ahead. The number "111" is colored in green, white and red, the Italian tri-color, a colorful reminder of Alpha Phi Delta's Italian heritage. It also features in large print our founding and anniversary dates: November 5: 1914 to 2025. 

Pictured above is our 111th Anniversary Heritage logo, which focuses on Alpha Phi Delta's Italian Heritage and family-like brotherhood. The flags of the U.S. (top) and Italy (bottom), remind our members our Fraternity's American origin and our Italian Heritage.

1911: Alpha Phi Delta founder Cesidio Guarini enrolls at Syracuse University. He meets Ferdinand DiBartolo.

1913: Guarini, DiBartolo (above), and five fellow students (Joseph Cangiamila, Dominic T. Ciolli, Anthony T. Frascati, Nicholas Frunzi, Otto Gelormini) form Il Circolo Italiano at Syracuse.

1914: The members of Il Circolo Italiano at Syracuse decide to form a fraternity; on Nov. 5 Alpha Phi Delta is born.

1916: Alpha Phi Delta and Sigma Gamma Phi meet in Syracuse and merge to become Alpha Phi Delta — a national fraternity. The first “convention” is held to elect leaders for the organization. The original shield of Alpha Phi Delt is shown above.

1918: Alpha’s Joseph Cangiamila, one of our founding fathers, is killed in a military training operation. He is the first founding father — indeed the first brother of Alpha Phi Delta — to die.

1919: On March 15, six men are sworn in to Alpha Phi Delta at Yale, which becomes our Gamma Chapter (first chapter outside of New York). Afterwards, our second National Convention is held at the Hotel Taft in New Haven, Conn. (shown above)

1923: By spring of 1923, there were twelve chapters in four states: New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Ohio. The Fraternity’s growth is swift.

1926: The first National Directory is published, followed swiftly by The Ticker (a national magazine),  precursor of The Kleos.

1927: Lambda Sigma Delta, an Italian fraternity at Boston University is merged into Alpha Phi Delta as our “Sigma” chapter. Within a year, two other chapters in Boston are chartered by the Fraternity. (The Sigma Chapter charter is shown above)

1928: The Cleveland Alumni Club is chartered as the Fraternity's first Alumni Club. By 1936, over a dozen Alumni Clubs have been chartered. (The National Convention was held in Cleveland, hosted by the Cleveland A.C., many members of the club are in the picture above)

1930: The Kleos (in late 1929) and The Dokime are established by Dr. Peter Sammartino (pictured above)

1933: Fraternity experiences its first chapter loss as it closes Omicron chapter at University of Michigan.

1938: Districting plan is put in effect that remains unchanged until 1982.

1940: The first three National Awards established by Grand Council (they were awards for Outstanding Undergraduate, Outstanding Alumnus and Most Improved Chapter). Picture above is Joseph Gambatese of Kappa Chapter -- the first winner of the Outstanding Alumnus Award.

1942: With World War II underway, Mu Chapter at Cornell donates its house to the U.S. Navy for use as housing for military . Mu brothers move to an apartment; they return to their house in fall 1945, after the end of World War II.

1942-44: During these peak years of World War II, the Fraternity closes more than half of its chapters as the war effort depletes the male college population.

1946: The largest memorial service to date is held to honor our brothers who lost their lives in World War II. That same year: our first formal Central Office is established in Boston. The fraternity flower,  white carnation (pictured above) was place in a wreath to honor deceased brothers at our memorial services -- this practice is still used today.

1953: The Fraternity abandons the Roman titles of Consul, Pro-Consul, Quaestor, etc. and replaced them with American titles: President, Vice President, Treasurer, etc. Grand Council was renamed National Council.

1960: Central Office is relocated to Pittsburgh, Pa., where it stays for 18 years, with Adam DiVincenzo  (pictured above) as National Secretary and Joseph Scotti as National Treasurer.

1965: On September 2, the National Council approves changes to officially allow non-Italians to join as members. The Kleos, in fall 1965, reported on this historic change with the headline shown above

1971: A new Oath of Brotherhood is formally ratified and becomes part of our Ritual.  Pictured above is Br. Camillus Casey, OSF, who chaired the Ritual Committe and led the revision of the Oath.

1973: The National Scholarship Fund is established, in 1980 it will be merged into the Alpha Phi Delta Foundation. Pictured is past National President Joseph DeGuglielmo in 1973 announcing the formation of the National Scholarship Fund.

1978: A new Constitution is adopted. It replaces the 1925 Constitution and reflects current fraternity operations. The Constitution would be revised and split into a Constitution and Bylaws in 1991 -- a recent copy of that revised Constitution is shown above.

1980: The Alpha Phi Delta Foundation is established. This new organization comprises three divisions: General fund, Scholarship and Housing. By the mid-90s the housing component is eliminated. Above is the image of the Foundation leaders signing founding documents.

1982: Major redistricting of the fraternity (the first since the 1930s) is undertaken and redistributes our entities from seven districts to 13 districts.

1987: The Annual Meeting of National Council (our governing body) is made into a separate gathering from the National Convention. The Convention remains in the summer, the Council meeting moves to the winter. Picture above are brothers at an early winter Council Meeting.

1990: The first edition of the Ecce Signum (the handbook for brothers) is issued to all undergraduate brothers. A portion of the cover of the most recent edition is shown.

1991: Chapter-based Alumni Associations are established by the National Council. 

1995: The Fraternity Leadership Conference program is born. The National Secretary day-long conferences in six different sites throughout the fraternity over a period of 10 weeks. The picture above shows a 2012 leadership conference gathering.

2007: After years of steeply increased fees, the National Council reverses course lowering initiation fees and replacing per capita tax with a flat assessment.

2013: Delta Psi Omega, a local fraternity at St. Joseph’s College in Patchogue, New York, merges with Alpha Phi Delta, becoming our Epsilon Gamma Chapter. It is our first merger since a local fraternity at Wesley College became our Delta Delta Chapter in 1991.

2014: In April, a Centennial Gala is held in Washington, D.C., at the Mayflower Hotel to celebrate the fraternity’s 100th anniversary. Over 400 brothers and guests attend. That summer a Centennial Convention was held drawing a record 525 conventioneers including 14 past national presidents.

2016: The National Archives of Alpha Phi Delta is established to house and preserve our fraternity's history. National Historian Ronald Smé, shown here promoting "The History of Alpha Phi Delta," helps coordinate the Archives.

2020: Due to the Coronavirus epidemic, and for the first time since World War II, the National Convention is cancelled. The Awards Banquet and Memorial Service are held at a Church hall in Marydel, Maryland, with a small attendance, and broadcast online.

2022: For the period of fall 2021 thru spring 2022, Chi Chapter (Penn State) set a non-expansion initiation record initiating 51 new brothers (about 17% all Fraternity initiations).

2023: John Russo, after having stepped-down as the Kleos Editor in 2021, after 30 years, steps down as Convention Chairman after 20 years. The 2023 Convention — the 100th in our history — marks Russo’s final one as chairman.

Number of Years of Brotherhood

Number of Brothers 

Initiated since 1914

Number of currently active 

Chapters and Colonies

Number of currently active  

Alumni Clubs and Associations

Our Average Undergraduate Grade Point Average (GPA)

Our College Graduation Rate

31-percentage points above the U.S. all-male grad rate

% of Members 

attending College on Scholarship

1st year to 2nd Year of College Retention Rate