Alpha Zeta Psi

Alpha Zeta Psi, or ΑΖΨ is the first and only co-ed Chinese-Interest Fraternity in the United States. It was founded on February 7, 2006 at the University of California, Davis. Alpha Zeta Psi is part of the Asian Greek Council on campus. The fraternity is dedicated to its five pillars of leadership, character development, philanthropy, brotherhood, and Chinese awareness.

Mission

The purpose of Alpha Zeta Psi is to enrich a greater sense of pride and understanding for the Chinese culture through a strong brotherhood and social life. Members take an active role in community service and demonstrate strong qualities of leadership, character, and pride.

History

Alpha Zeta Psi was founded on February 7, 2006 at the University of California, Davis. The fraternity was founded by principal founder Chris Wei, who realized that there was a lack of Chinese awareness on campus. He believed that a large cultural gap existed between American Born Chinese (ABC) students and students from China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

He also recognized that there was a lack of cultural knowledge amongst ABC’s and had a goal to bring students closer to their roots. Aside from cultural awareness, he is also an advocate of building brotherhood through leadership and character instead of hazing. Hence, Wei and a group of four other men decided to form Alpha Zeta Psi. Later on, two of these five men would drop out due to personal obligations. From then on, Chris Wei, Eric Auyeung, and Cheng Hang have been recognized as the three founding fathers who have laid the backbone for the fraternity. Alpha Class officially crossed in June of 2006, and the fraternity currently has eight classes that have crossed.

During spring 2010, Alpha Zeta Psi allowed co-ed membership and became one of the first Greek social organizations to do so. All members are called "Brothers," regardless of gender since the term is considered gender-neutral.

Leadership & Character Development

The Fraternity has held several leadership workshops led by members as well as outside resources. Past workshops have ranged from resume writing, interview skills, to lion dancing. Several members are also involved in outside jobs and organizations, which is a strong tool for networking and internship opportunities. Moreover, the fraternity strives for all of its brothers to achieve his greatest academic potential and recognizes academic achievement.

Philanthropy

Community Service is a large part of Alpha Zeta Psi’s mission statement. In the past, the fraternity volunteered for the Sacramento Bee Book Drive and also helped KVIE raise over $10,000 working on phone banks. Each year, Alpha Zeta Psi also volunteers for the Pacific Rim Festival and the Oakland Chinatown Streetfest. On campus, the fraternity often works at concession booths for various Davis sporting events.

Brotherhood

The fraternity strongly supports a true and life-long brotherhood amongst its members through shared values, tradition, and unity. The fraternity is involved in numerous cultural events, community services, socials, road trips, and retreats that build a strong brotherhood. Quarterly formals also occur which celebrate the new members of the fraternity and also recognize the achievements of active brothers.

Chinese Awareness

Alpha Zeta Psi strongly supports learning of the Chinese culture and language. The fraternity strives to spread Chinese awareness among its members and campus students. In the past, the fraternity has held cultural workshops to the school which included lion dancing, how to play majong, and the history of “bian lian”, or “face changing.” Several members of the fraternity are also part of Chinese student organizations such as TCSS (Taiwanese Chinese Student Society) and CSA (Chinese Student Association), which creates a strong network with campus cultural clubs. In the past, brothers were also involved in providing mandarin tutoring for adopted children from China who are living in the U.S. This was a good way to help children with a Chinese background to learn their own language as well as their own culture. Alpha Zeta Psi is also part of the Asian Greek Council (AGC) on campus, an umbrella organization that includes Asian fraternities and sororities on campus.