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The UPJ Greeks
Welcome to the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown Greek Alumni home! Our website seeks to preserve the history of the Greek organizations that have helped form the backbone of the creation of student leaders for over sixty years in Johnstown. From it's humble beginnings on April 7 1961, with the organization of the first fraternity, to today, Greeks have played a leadership in philanthropy, provided a cohesive voice for student concerns, driven academics standard, stimulated innovation and understanding amongst their membership stressed the importance of adapting to a myriad of unforeseen circumstances.
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The Greek Experience has assisted in the development of the key leadership skills that have led alumni members to become senators, business and industry leaders, officers in the armed services, television personalities and innovators in fields from medicine and law to scientific research and education.
By their very nature, Greek Letter organizations suffer from the same transience of student population that can be seen at any university campus. An entire 'generation' of students passes through its doors in a short four or five years and within seven years the 'institutional knowledge' of the student body is lost to the vagaries of memory. Unlike sports teams, or on-campus clubs, Greek organizations pass the torch of tradition, history and the bonds of brotherhood, sisterhood and friendship that span each generation. Greek Organizations provide a common bond. That "bond' from the individual organization members extends to the other organizations and their members who share a common history from their 'time' together. THIS is what makes Greeks the the backbone of alumni support at almost every University around the United States. |
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As a result of the transient nature of the student body, each generation requires nurturing by both the alumni and the University itself. In the early days, when Johnstown was a two year college, one term without pledges could ring the death knell of an organization's life.
Some organizations were unable to weather the difficult times. That does not mean that they did not have an impact. This does not mean that they somehow failed. It means that at some critical juncture, of perhaps one or two academic years, something went awry. Indeed, some of the founding members of those organizations that no longer grace the campus of Johnstown have become the impetus for this website's creation, the preservation of Greek History at UPJ and the passing of the torch to those future generations.
There are other organizations that have weathered the storm of generational change for over 60 years. Each and every one of the current Greek organizations still needs nurturing and support in explaining to a new generation of students of why "Going Greek!" is important to their development of their character and the acquisition of a sound well rounded education.
After nearly 25 years of conversation amongst various Greek Alumni that "We need to do this!", we did. Now it's time to dig out your photo albums, your scrapbooks and your stories and let's reminisce with some old friends. Take a look at our REUNION Tab to see some of the future years plans. Every academic year has a reunion year! Call your pledge class, call your old friends from your time a UPJ and come back for YOUR Homecoming year!
Some organizations were unable to weather the difficult times. That does not mean that they did not have an impact. This does not mean that they somehow failed. It means that at some critical juncture, of perhaps one or two academic years, something went awry. Indeed, some of the founding members of those organizations that no longer grace the campus of Johnstown have become the impetus for this website's creation, the preservation of Greek History at UPJ and the passing of the torch to those future generations.
There are other organizations that have weathered the storm of generational change for over 60 years. Each and every one of the current Greek organizations still needs nurturing and support in explaining to a new generation of students of why "Going Greek!" is important to their development of their character and the acquisition of a sound well rounded education.
After nearly 25 years of conversation amongst various Greek Alumni that "We need to do this!", we did. Now it's time to dig out your photo albums, your scrapbooks and your stories and let's reminisce with some old friends. Take a look at our REUNION Tab to see some of the future years plans. Every academic year has a reunion year! Call your pledge class, call your old friends from your time a UPJ and come back for YOUR Homecoming year!
About GACWelcome to the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown's Greek Alumni Council is a subcommittee for the UPJ Alumni Board.
UPJ has a rich and vibrant history of Greek organizations. The mission of the GAC is to promote the welfare and interest of the Greek social organizations of the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown and their alumni. The GAC shall encourage our members to truly embody the values upon which our individual Greek organizations were founded. The goal of the GAC will be to unite the alumni of the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown Greek community by keeping its members informed of and engaged with Greek issues and events, as well as University and Alumni events and endeavors. 
 UPJ Greek Alumni is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. |
About UPJThe University of Pittsburgh first established a presence in California prior to World War I when the Johnstown School Board asked the university to offer continuing education courses at extension class sites in local teachers' institutions. By 1926, a more permanent relationship was sought by the school board, and UPJ was officially founded as a two-year college of the University of Pittsburgh on September 24, 1927 as one of the first regional campuses of a major university in the United States.
Throughout the 1920s and 1930s it held classes in the Johnstown High School building in the Kernville section of downtown Johnstown. After World War II, the Johnstown College moved to the Moxham section of town where the number of courses and students increased.
In the early 1960s, community leaders worked with the University of Pittsburgh to build a new campus in Richland Township, a Johnstown suburb. The new campus opened in 1967 with two classroom buildings, five dormitories and a student union.
Degree-granting status was awarded to UPJ by the University of Pittsburgh in 1970. The campus has grown significantly since that time with five academic buildings, a library, an expanded student union, a sports and aquatic center, a conference center, a chapel, a performing arts center, and a large cluster of dormitories, lodges, townhouse apartments and other student residence housing. UPJ now offers over 40 baccalaureate and associate degree programs.University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, also known as UPJ or Pitt-Johnstown, is a four-year, degree-granting regional campus of the University of Pittsburgh. UPJ is ranked as the 28th best baccalaureate college in the North and the eighth best public baccalaureate college in the North by U.S. News & World Report in its "America's Best Colleges 2010" annual college guide. UPJ is also listed among the "Best Colleges in the Northeastern Region" by The Princeton Review. The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown is first and largest regional campus of the University of Pittsburgh, and has made a name for itself in continually providing students with excellent instruction grounded in liberal arts and sciences, with diversity, a sense of community, partnership opportunities, and high employment rates. |
Who is the Greek Alumni Council?
The Greek Alumni Council (GAC) is an wholly independent organization comprised of Fraternity and Sorority Alumni of the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown. It is not directly affiliated with any Greek letter organizations other the the composition of the organization is wholly Fraternity and Sorority Alumni from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown. It is not governed, nor a part of: The University of Pittsburgh, The University of Pittsburgh Alumni Association and or it's branches and subsidiaries. Although, from time-to-time, the GAC does collaborate with all of the aforementioned organizations. The GAC is a non-profit organization created and established for non-business purposes which are charitable, educational or scientific within the meaning of Section 501(c)(3). All images and information on this site are for purposes such as "criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research." Any images that reference the University of Pittsburgh or it's affiliates are to be considered derivative works that have had substantial modification so as not to be confused with any branding or trademarks of the University of Pittsburgh and/or it's affiliates.
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THIS IS A onging DEVELOPMENTAL WEBSITE originally CREATED December 23, 2014. All images and content are only now being documented. All articles and submissions are gathered from the public domain and attribution is provided whenever possible. |