Acacia Fraternity
| Acacia Fraternity | |
|---|---|
| Ακακία | |
 |
|
| Founded | May 12, 1904 University of Michigan at Ann Arbor |
| Type | Social |
| Scope | United States Canada |
| Motto |
ΩΦΕΛΟΥΝΤΕΣ ΑΝΘΡΩΠΟΥΣ – "Human Service" |
| Colors |
Black and Old Gold |
| Symbol | 3-4-5 right triangle of the first quadrant |
| Flower | Sprig of Acacia in bloom |
| Chapters | 29 in United States, 1 in Canada, 4 colonies |
| Principles | Scholarship, Leadership, Brotherhood, Philanthropy. |
| Headquarters |
8777 Purdue Road, Suite 225 Indianapolis, Indiana USA |
| Homepage | acacia.org |
Acacia Fraternity (Ακακία) is a social fraternity founded in 1904 at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The fraternity has 28 active chapters and 4 colonies throughout Canada and the United States. The fraternity was founded by undergraduate Freemasons, and was originally open only to men who had taken the Masonic obligations, but in 1933 the International Conclave elected to dispense with the Masonic prerequisite. In 1988, at the 45th Conclave, the fraternity elected to use "International" rather than "National" when referring to the fraternity.
Acacia Fraternity was founded on 12 May 1904, by a group of 14 Freemasons attending the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. From the time of its founding, members of other fraternities were eligible for membership in Acacia. However, the fraternity’s rapid growth allowed it to stand on its own as a separate and co-equal fraternity, and in 1921 it dropped the provision that allowed men of other fraternities to join.
During the first two decades of the 20th century, Acacia was evolving from its roots as a successful Masonic club into the more standardized model of the other collegiate fraternities of the day. While maintaining its history and the symbolism derived from the Masonic fraternity, because of what Baird's cites (pIII-1) as a decline in the number of student Masons in undergraduate schools, Acacia opted in 1931 to relax the requirement that members must be Masons, removing the provision entirely in 1933.
Early chapters were named alphabetically using Hebrew letters; these first 26 chapters at their option continue to use their historical designations today, while younger chapters are named after the institution at which they are located.
The fraternity officially became International in 1988 at the 45th Conclave after the addition of the University of Western Ontario Chapter and the petition of the Carleton University Chapter.
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