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Epsilon Pi Chapter of Sigma Nu Fraternity Scholarship Program

purpose

To encourage scholarly achievement and fraternal leadership exemplifying the Creed of Sigma Nu, the Epsilon Pi Alumni of Sigma Nu Fraternity, Inc. (the Alumni Board) has established this scholarship program to benefit members of the Active Chapter. For the Academic Year 2020-2021, allocations will provide $260,000 in tuition grants to members and will be awarded on a graduated basis so that all members in good standing may benefit.

Program Entities

This scholarship program works under the coordination of four distinct entities:

  1. The Alumni Board is a tax-exempt 501(c)7 corporation that owns the fraternity facility and oversees activities of the undergraduate members. As a feature of the AB, a scholarship subcommittee oversees the evaluation of scholarship applicants and the allocation of grants.
  2. The Sigma Nu Alumni Scholarship Fund (SNASF) is a separate tax-exempt corporation that qualifies as a 501(c)3 entity. The SNASF controls an endowment currently valued at approximately $1.6 million (Jan 2021) and makes annual determinations of the aggregate amount of grants to be made available to the AB for tuition assistance and reimbursement of AB expenses of an educational nature.
  3. The undergraduate Scholarship Chairman, an active member of the Epsilon Pi Fraternity of Sigma Nu, coordinates the submission of scholarship applications and makes recommendations to the AB regarding the distribution of grants.
  4. The Carol L. Merlone Educational Foundation (“CLMEF”), founded by alumnus Peter Merlone is a separate tax-exempt corporation that qualifies as a 501(c)3 entity which has pledged $2 million in tuition support to qualifying members through 2030 as a bridge allowing the SNASF endowment to grow to the point it can support in perpetuity an annual payout program that exceeds $250,000.

Scholarships winners are announced each fall at Sigma Nu Honors, an alumni-led event that reinforces the lifetime bond and support network enjoyed by members of the UCLA Fraternity.

Program Elements

Each chapter member is required to file a UCLA tuition financial assistance statement for each academic year of chapter membership to assure that the Chapter scholarships will be applied to net tuition with residue remaining with Sigma Nu Alumni Scholarship Fund (SNASF) and/or Carol L. Merlone Educational Foundation (CLMEF). The scholarships will apply to net tuition per academic year (fall through spring) after accounting for other University tuition assistance from such programs as Pell grants as well as payments from various UCLA and UC endowments programs.

These scholarship awards require that members forfeit their grant if they fall out of good standing. As part of the program, recipients are required to pay back the award amount if they fail to maintain good standing and must acknowledge this obligation by signing this document and returning to the Alumni Board. In alignment with University, Alumni Board policies and the values of Epsilon Pi, a member is not in good standing if:

  1. The member at the end of an academic term is not current on his house bill (live-in rent and/or chapter dues);
  2. The member at the end of an academic term earns a grade point average below a 2.5;
  3. The member at the end of an academic term has a cumulative grade point average below a 2.5;
  4. The member is placed on academic or disciplinary probation by the University;
  5. The member is suspended from the University or Epsilon Pi;
  6. The member withdraws from the University; or
  7. The member engages in behavior unbecoming of Epsilon Pi.

Status Scholarships via the CLMEF contain the following quarterly payouts:

  • Base Scholarship – All members in good standing with the Chapter and the University – $333.33 ea.
  • Live-In Scholarship – All members resident in Fraternity house – $200 ea.
  • Upper-class Live-In Scholarship – All Junior/Senior members resident in Fraternity house – $500 ea.
  • Academic Excellence Scholarship – All members with 3.75+ cumulative GPA – $333.33 ea.

Honors Scholarships via the SNASF contain the following quarterly payouts:

  • The Gerald L. Coffee Scholarship Winner – $3,333.33
  • The Gerald L. Coffee Scholarship Finalists – $1,000
  • Honors Winners – $666.66 or $500

Implementation

  1. The Chapter Scholarship Chairman will call for applications in Spring Quarter.
  2. The Chapter Scholarship Committee will review applications and forward recommendations to the Alumni Board of Directors by the end of the academic year.
  3. The Chapter Treasurer will present to the Alumni Board a document containing the names, class (freshman, sophomore, junior, senior) and UCLA account numbers so that the base scholarships may be paid. The document will be organized by those living in the Fraternity House and those choosing to live out. Junior and senior classmen choosing to live in will be identified so that their live-in supplements may be paid. The Treasurer’s report will be delivered to the Alumni Board by end of the spring quarter. In event of changes prior to start of a new term in the fall, the Treasurer will report those changes to the Alumni Board so adjustments may be made to the awards.
  4. For the Gerald L. Coffee Scholarship, the Committee will submit a minimum of two nominees for a final determination by the Alumni Board of Directors.
  5. The Alumni Board will review the Committee’s recommendations and adjust and/or confirm the recommendations.
  6. The Alumni Board will determine the qualifications, amounts and number of awards for the Scholastic Leadership, Scholastic Achievement, and Need-Based scholarships year-to-year.
  7. The awards, which will be announced prior to the beginning of fall quarter will be applied in three equal installments for a full term of three quarters.
  8. The Alumni Board retains copyrights to all applicant essay content and reserves the right to publish in portion or in full this content to advocate for the fraternity through all media methods of communication.
  9. All recipients must be and remain in good standing with the Chapter and with UCLA. The Alumni Board reserves the right to disqualify any candidate for application content or actions as reported by the Scholarship Committee unbecoming of a Sigma Nu.
  10. In event a Member should leave or graduate before completing three quarters in a term, the scholarship will paid one third of the total amount per quarter attended with the residue remaining with the scholarship foundations.
  11. Once the Alumni Board has determined final scholarship awards, the AB Scholarship Chair will forward the information to Bresee-Warner and the Sigma Nu Alumni Scholarship Fund. Bresee-Warner will prepare instructions for payment of the scholarships through UCLA’s Office of Payments Solutions and Compliance, University of California Los Angeles, Box 951432, 1125 Murphy Hall, Los Angeles CA 90095-9000.