Omicron Chi Epsilon

Omicron Chi Epsilon
ΟΧΕ
Founded	1955; 71 years ago (1955) City College of New York
Type	Honor
Affiliation	Independent
Status	Merged
Merge date	January 1, 1963
Successor	Omicron Delta Epsilon
Emphasis	Economics
Scope	National
Publication	The Journal of Omicron Chi Epsilon
Chapters	28
Headquarters	United States

Omicron Chi Epsilon (ΟΧΕ) was an American college honor society for economics. It was established in 1955 at the City College of New York. The organization established 28 chapters before merging with Omicron Delta Gamma to form Omicron Delta Epsilon in 1963.

History

Under the leadership of undergraduate student Alan A. Brown, a group of students at the City College of New Yorkdecided to establish a coeducational economics honor society in December 1955.^[1][2][3] The result was the establishment of the Alpha chapter of Omicron Chi Epsilon at City College of New York in January 1956.^[1][4] Brown was the organization's first president.^[5][3] Professor Edwin P. Reubens for the society's faculty advisor.^[2]

A second chapter was established at Manhattan College later in 1956.^[1][2][4] At this point, Omicron Chi Epsilon adopted a national constitution and elected Brown as its national president.^[1] John D. Guilfoil was selected to serve as its national secretary-treasurer.^[1] The society's purpose was "to recognize outstanding students but also to encourage scholarship through conferences and the publication of its official journal".^[6]

Omicron Chi Epsilon quickly expanded.^[1][7] Chapters were established at Fordham University, Queens College, and Hofstra College in 1957.^[2][8] The first annual meeting of Omicron Chi Epsilon was held at Fordham University in New York City in the spring of 1958, with Nicholas Kaldor as the guest speaker.^[1] Later that year, chapters were established at Harvard University, Princeton University, Columbia University, St. Francis College, and St. John's University.^[2][1]

The society's fourth annual meeting was held at Hofstra University on February 28, 1959.^[9] In attendance were members of nine chapters, as well a representatives from Tufts University and Boston College, which were petitioning for membership.^[9] Both chapters were chartered during the meeting.^[9]

Omicron Chi Epsilon's fifth annual meeting was held at Harvard University on February 27, 1960.^[3] It was attended by representatives from fifteen chapters and two petitioning chapters.^[3] Saint Peter's College was admitted as Pi chapter during the meeting.^[3] In addition, Brown was granted the title president emeritus for life.^[3]

At the December 27, 1960, annual convention at Columbia University in New York City, chapters were admitted at Cornell University, New York University, and Bethany College.^[10] Chapters at Southern Methodist University, Dartmouth College, University of Oklahoma, Tulane University, and Syracuse University were admitted at the December 28, 1961 convention at Queens College.^[11] The society voted against joining the Association of College Honor Societies but did vote to pursue a merger with Omicron Delta Gamma (Order of Altus).^[11]

Brown initiated contact with Omicron Delta Gamma, a similar organization that was established in 1915, about a possible merger with Omicron Chi Epsilon.^[4] Omicron Delta Gamma chapters were located in the Midwest and West, while Omicron Chi Epsilon's 28 chapters were in the East Coast and Texas.^[4] Their only duplication was at New York University.^[4] All chapters of Omicron Chi Epsilon approved the merger via a mail referendum in 1962.^[12]

The merger was effective on January 1, 1963, establishing a new organization named Omicron Delta Epsilon.^[13][2][12] Brown became chairman of the board of Omicron Delta Epsilon.^[4]

Activities

Omicron Chi Epsilon conducted business on the national, regional, and local levels.^[7] The national organizations held annual meetings and conferences, and published the organization's journal.^[7] Its publication was The Journal of Omicron Chi Epsilon.^[14][15][16] During its annual meetings, members presented papers, and the society's official business was conducted, including electing the executive board.^[7] At the regional level, chapters jointly held meetings and programs.^[7] Local activities included meetings, speakers, and presentations of papers by members.^[7]

Membership

Membership in Omicron Chi Epsilon was awarded for outstanding academic work to male and female juniors, seniors, and graduate students who were studying economics.^[7][17][18] To be eligible for membership, students needed a 3.0 GPA for twelve hours of economics classes.^[19] Potential members were required to present an original paper to the society.^[20]

Governance

Omicron Chi Epsilon was overseen by an executive board consisting of a national president, national secretary-treasurer (became national secretary and national treasurer in December 1961),^[11] regional vice-president of New York, regional vice-president of New England, regional vice-president of the Central Atlantic, regional vice-president of the Southern region, regional vice-president of North Central, regional vice president for the Western region, and editor-in-chief of the journal.^[7][9][3] The board was elected at annual meetings.^[7] In addition, the society has a senior advisory board consisting of the chapter faculty advisors.^[7] The society also had a committee on policy that included former national officers and student members.^[7]

Chapters

Following are the chapters of Omicron Chi Epsilon, with inactive chapters indicated in italics.^{[2][4][8][7][21]}

Chapter	Charter date and range	Institution	Location	Status	Ref.
Alpha	January 1956 – January 1, 1963	City College of New York	New York City, New York	Merged	[1][a]
Beta	1956 – January 1, 1963	Manhattan College	Riverdale, Bronx, New York City, New York	Merged
Gamma	1957 – January 1, 1963	Fordham University	New York City, New York	Merged
Delta	1957 – January 1, 1963	Queens College	New York City, New York	Merged
Epsilon	1957 – January 1, 1963	Hofstra College	Hempstead, New York	Merged
Zeta	1958 – January 1, 1963	Harvard University	Cambridge, Massachusetts	Merged	[b]
Eta	1958 – January 1, 1963	Princeton University	Princeton, New Jersey	Merged
Theta	1958 – January 1, 1963	Columbia University	New York City, New York	Merged
Iota	May 1958 – January 1, 1963	St. Francis College	Brooklyn, New York	Merged
Kappa	November 18, 1958 – January 1, 1963	St. John's University	Queens, New York City, New York	Merged
Lambda	February 28, 1959 – January 1, 1963	Tufts University	Medford, Massachusetts	Merged	[9]
Mu	February 28, 1959 – January 1, 1963	Boston College	Boston, Massachusetts	Merged	[9]
Nu	1959 – January 1, 1963	University of Pennsylvania	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Merged
Xi	1959 – January 1, 1963	University of Texas	Austin, Texas	Merged
Omicron	1959 – January 1, 1963	University of Houston	Houston, Texas	Merged
Pi	February 27, 1960 – January 1, 1963	Saint Peter's College	Jersey City, New Jersey	Merged	[22][3][21]
Rho	December 27, 1960 – January 1, 1963	Cornell University	Ithaca, New York	Merged	[10]
Sigma	December 27, 1960 – January 1, 1963	New York University	New York City, New York	Merged	[10]
Tau	December 27, 1960 – January 1, 1963	Bethany College	Bethany, West Virginia	Merged	[10]
Upsilon	1961 – January 1, 1963	Southern Methodist University	Dallas, Texas	Merged
Phi	1961 – January 1, 1963	Dartmouth College	Hanover, New Hampshire	Merged
Chi	1961 – January 1, 1963	University of Oklahoma	Norman, Oklahoma	Merged	[23]
Psi	1961 – January 1, 1963	Tulane University	New Orleans, Louisiana	Merged
Omega	1961 – January 1, 1963	Syracuse University	Syracuse, New York	Merged
Alpha Alpha	1962 – January 1, 1963	Wisconsin State College–River Falls	River Falls, Wisconsin	Merged
Alpha Beta	1962 – January 1, 1963	Bradley University	Peoria, Illinois	Merged
Alpha Gamma	1962 – January 1, 1963	Fisk University	Nashville, Tennessee	Merged

1. Although Omicron Chi Epsilon was established in December 1955, its Alpha chapter was not formed until January 1956, according to the society's founder and first president.
2. Harvard had dropped its chapter of the Omicron Delta Gamma (Order of Artus), but probably added Omicron Chi Epsilon because Alan A. Brown was in graduate school there at the time.

Notable members

• Charles M. Berger, CEO of Scotts Miracle-Gro Company and business executive who created advertising campaigns for Heinz ketchup^[24][25]
• Alan A. Brown, professor of economics at the University of Windsor
• Thomas DeGregori, economist and professor at the University of Houston^{[26][27][28][29]}
• Julius B. Levine, professor of law at Boston University School of Law^{[20][30][31][32][33][34][21]}
• Alexander J. Kondonassis, chair of the Department of Economics and director of the Division of Economics at the University of Oklahoma; faculty sponsor of chapter^{[19][35][36][23]}
• Charles Siegman, media scholar and policy advocate^[7]
• Houston H. Stokes, head of the department of economics at the University of Illinois Chicago^[37][38][39]
• Stefan Valavanis, a Harvard econometrician and faculty advisor of the Zeta chapter^[7]
• William J. Weary, dean of the school of commerce at St. John's University and secretary-registrar of New York Law School^[40][41]

See also

• Honor society
• Professional fraternities and sororities

References

1. Brown, Alan A. “Report of the National President.” Journal of Omicron Chi Epsilon. vol. 2, no. 1 (1957): 4. JSTOR 25603376
2. Robson, John, ed. (1963). Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities (17th ed.). Menasha, Wisconsin: George Banta Co. pp. 672–673. OCLC 1819883.
3. Blair, Andrew R. "Fifth Annual Convention of Omicron Chi Epsilon National Honor Society in Economics Held at Harvard University, February 27, 1960". The American Economist. 4 (1): 51. JSTOR 25602539.
4. Gunther, William D. “The History of Omicron Delta Epsilon: The International Honor Society in Economics.” The American Economist, vol. 58, no. 2 (2013): 90-91. JSTOR 43664745
5. "Omicron Delta Epsilon". Brandeis University. Retrieved 2025-01-31.
6. "History of ODE". Omicron Delta Epsilon. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
7. Brown, Alan A. “President’s Report 1958 - 1959.” Journal of Omicron Chi Epsilon 3, no. 1 (1959): 36–36. JSTOR 25603390
8. “Chapter News.” Journal of Omicron Chi Epsilon, vol. 3, no. 1 (1959): 31–35. JSTOR 25603389
9. Blair, Andrew R. “Minutes of the Fourth Annual Convention of Omicron Chi Epsilon Held at Hofstra College, February 28, 1959.” Journal of Omicron Chi Epsilon 3, no. 1 (1959): 38–39. JSTOR 25603392.
10. Naus, Joseph. “Sixth Annual Convention of Omicron Chi Epsilon National Honor Society in Economics Held in New York City, December 27, 1960.” The American Economist, vol. 5, no. 1 (1961): 27. JSTOR 25602554
11. Naus, Joseph. “Seventh Annual Convention of Omicron Chi Epsilon National Honor Society in Economics Held at Queens College, December 28, 1961.” The American Economist, vol. 6, no. 1 (1962): 27–27. JSTOR 25602570
12. Guilfoil, John D. “President’s Report.” The American Economist. vol. 6, no. 2 (1962): 54. JSTOR 25602584
13. "Omicron Delta Epsilon Honor Society- Economics". Association of College Honor Societies. December 16, 2011. Archived from the original on 2012-04-15. Retrieved 2025-01-31 – via web.archive.org.
14. “Front Matter.” Journal of Omicron Chi Epsilon, vol. 3, no. 1 (1959). JSTOR 25603385
15. Siegman, Charles. “What and Who — an Introduction.” Journal of Omicron Chi Epsilon, vol. 2, no. 1, 1957, p. 3. JSTOR 25603375 . Accessed 3 Dec. 2025.
16. "Editor-in-Chief". The Herald Statesman. Yonkers, New York. 1958-07-25. p. 4. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
17. "Lakewood Area". Asbury Park Press. 1958-05-08. p. 15. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
18. Maguire, James. “Gamma Chapter News — Fordham University.” Journal of Omicron Chi Epsilon vol. 2, no. 1 (1957): 26–26. JSTOR 25603381
19. "Honor Group Plans Smoker". The Oklahoma Daily. Norman, Oklahoma. 1961-03-29. p. 12. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
20. "Julius B. Levine Joins Harvard Society". Morning Sentinel. Waterville, Maine. 1959-02-13. p. 14. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
21. Joel Gemunder, Charles Cavaliere, Werner J. Zumbrunn, Susan Saffer, Bernard Rogenstein, Carl H. Stem, David S. Friedberg, et al. "Chapter News and Reports". Journal of Omicron Chi Epsilon National Honor Society in Economics. Supplement to American Economist. vol. 4, no. 1 (1960): i–v. JSTOR 25602541
22. "Campus Corner". The Herald-News. Passaic, New Jersey. 1960-04-15. p. 38. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
23. "New OU Group to Initiate 15". The Norman Transcript. 1962-05-18. p. 11. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
24. "Wed to Scranton Resident". The Times-Tribune. Scranton, Pennsylvania. 1960-06-07. p. 17. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
25. "Berger Name to Position in Cincinnati". The Tribune. Scranton, Pennsylvania. 1960-09-20. p. 15. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
26. Smith, LaRahia (July 3, 2025). "Veteran UH economist Thomas DeGregori dies after 60-year academic career". University of Houston. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
27. "Thomas DeGregori - University of Houston". uh.academia.edu. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
28. "DeGregorio Elected President of Group". The Albuquerque Tribune. 1960-04-22. p. 8. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
29. "Thomas Roger DeGregori Obituary June 22, 2025". Grace Funeral Home. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
30. "In Memoriam: Professor Julius B. Levine". The Record. Boston University School of Law. 2018. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
31. "Julius (Jules) Byron Levine". Harvard Class of 1960. The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
32. "Obituary: Julius B. Levine". Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. 2018-04-19. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
33. "Waterville Man Among 32 Named Rhodes Scholars". Portland Press Herald. 1959-12-21. p. 20. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
34. "Levine Selected as Class Orator at Harvard". Morning Sentinel. Waterville, Maine. 1960-05-28. p. 11. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
35. "Alexander J. Kondonassis | Hall of Fame Member Biographies". Oklahoma Higher Education Heritage Society. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
36. "Alexander J. Kondonassis Obituary". The Oklahoman. 2023-05-15. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
37. "Houston Stokets Gets B.A. Degree from Cornell". The Berkshire Eagle. Pittsfield, Massachusetts. 1962-06-16. p. 6. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
38. "Stokes, Houston H. | Economics". University of Illinois Chicago. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
39. "Berkshire Country Day School - Dr. Houston H. Stokes, PhD, BCD Class of 1953". Berkshire Country Day School. 2015-01-12. Retrieved 2025-12-03.
40. "St. John's Will Honor Delegate". The Tablet. Brooklyn, New York. 1960-06-04. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-12-03 – via Newspapers.com.
41. "Deaths". The New York Times. 1977-06-02. p. 34. Retrieved 2025-12-03.