Scholarships
Our alumni have endowed several scholarships for our undergraduate members, through the Beta Phi Foundation, Purdue University and/or Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity. Eligibility for these annual awards are unique to each scholarship and are based on criteria such as academic performance, chapter leadership or financial need for undergraduate brothers currently living in the chapter house.
To date, over $135,000 has been awarded to our undergraduates through these endowed scholarships. Currently, the combined annual award potential of these scholarships is over $10,000. We are very grateful to our alumni for endowing these awards.
Learn more about these scholarships and the individuals who have generously endowed these awards.
If you are interested in establishing a scholarship for undergraduate members of the Beta Phi Chapter, please contact Chuck Rice at rice.chuck1@gmail.com.
Arthur Stutz Bowes Scholarship
Pin Number One. Initiated on April 15, 1922. Arthur Stutz Bowes was a distinguished founding father of the Beta Phi Chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha.
Born in New York City. Raised in Louisville, Kentucky. Art Bowes was initiated as a member of the Emanon Club at Purdue University and was president at the time the Emanon Club received a charter to Pi Kappa Alpha.
Brother Bowes served as President/SMC of the Emanon Club and Beta Phi Chapter for 2 ½ years. He was also very active in campus activities while at Purdue. This includes President of the Purdue Pan-Hellenic Council and the Intra-fraternity Council of the State of Indiana, which he organized. He also worked on the Purdue Exponent and was put in charge of all publicity for the student and alumni drives to raise a million dollars for the new Memorial Union Building. As a reward for his campus efforts, he was elected to Iron Key senior honorary society. Art graduated from Purdue in 1923 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Science Administration.
Brother Bowes also led the efforts, with Brother Russell T Gray, to purchase the first Chapter House on Littleton Street for $30,000 in 1926.
Brother Bowes began his professional career as Associate Editor of Cement and Engineering News in Chicago. Later, he was an executive at Universal Paper Products Company in Chicago and a director of Owens-Illinois, Inc. Arthur continued his service to Pi Kappa Alpha after graduating as President of the Pi Kappa Alpha Alumni Club of Chicago as well as Trustee of the Pi Kappa Alpha Memorial Foundation.
The Arthur Stutz Bowes Scholarship, jointly endowed with Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity and the Beta Phi Foundation, was established in 1983 to recognize Beta Phi brothers excelling in both leadership and scholarship. To date, over 40 brothers have received this award. The leaders of the chapter determine the recipient of this scholarship each year.
Some of the brothers who have recently received the Arthur Stutz Bowes Scholarship include:
Robert Louis Rain Scholarship
Pin Number 517. Bob Rain was initiated into the Beta Phi chapter on October 31, 1952. His younger brother Don Rain (Pin Number 563) recalled that Bob valued the fine art of a good handshake. Always be the first to extend your hand in greeting. “Don’t break their hand”, he’d caution. “But don’t give them a limp, dead fish either!” Bob believed that a good first impression was a step toward a possible friendship. Don says that Bob learned this as a Pi Kappa Alpha pledge.
Bob was born in July 1933 in St. Louis, Missouri. He later moved to Terre Haute, Indiana where he graduated from Wiley High School and met the love of his life, Mary Louise Mabis. Bob and Mary Lou both attended Purdue University where he graduated with honors in 1955, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering. He and Mary Lou were married later that year.
While at Purdue, Bob served as President of the Beta Phi chapter his junior year. Later, Bob also served on the Beta Phi Home Association Board.
As a senior at Purdue, Bob proudly resided with two other brothers in the third floor Mount Olympus Room of the chapter house at 149 Andrew Place. Per Don, this was the largest and best room in the house. It looked out onto Andrew Place and you could step out the window onto the roof over the porch.
Bob and Don were also both in the US Navy ROTC under the “Holloway Plan”. Named after Admiral Holloway, this was a four-year NROTC program that enabled the graduates to serve as regular officers in the Navy upon graduation, similar to an Annapolis graduate. Bob was stationed in Newport, Rhode Island for three years and assigned as the Operations Officer aboard the Navy Destroyer “Caperton” DD650.
After his naval service, Bob’s career included stints at Shell Chemical, Marvon Chemical and Baxter Laboratories. His favorite hobby was tennis and Bob enjoyed umpiring matches for the USTA in the Midwest region. Bob and Mary Lou were also active members of the First Presbyterian Church in Deerfield, Illinois as well as The Church of Joy in Palm Desert, California. They had two children, four grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. Don says that Bob’s life was one of service and dedication to his God, Country, Family and Friends.
The Robert Louis Rain Scholarship was established in 2002 and is jointly endowed with the Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity and the Beta Phi Foundation. This scholarship recognizes the brother with the highest GPA. Some of the brothers who have received this scholarship include:
Charles Glasgow/Charles Kent Scholarship
Pin Number 610, Charles David Kent was born and raised in Port Arthur, Texas, Charlie Kent made his way to Purdue University after high school. He was initiated into the Beta Phi chapter on February 23, 1958. Charlie graduated from Purdue in 1960 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Management Administration. Following graduation, he served two years as an officer in the Unted States Marine Corps Air Wing in Japan and in May 1964 he received his MBA from the University of Texas in Austin.
Charlie’s career included work as a cost accountant, computer systems developer, vice president and owner of a local recreational ski area near Madison, Wisconsin.
It was at the University of Texas that Charlie met his wife of 59 years, Mary Lynn. At the time of his passing in December 2023 at the age of 85, Charlie and Mary Lynn had two daughters and six grandchildren.
Charlie initially endowed a scholarship with the Beta Phi Foundation to recognize the outstanding ROTC student living in the house. Over the years, the number of brothers participating in ROTC declined and, in some years, no one was in the ROTC program. The scholarship was then changed and is now awarded annually to the brother with the most improved GPA.
Charles Walter Glasgow, pin number 353, was initiated into the Beta Phi Chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha on February 10, 1944. He graduated from Purdue in 1948 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering. Charles passed away in New Bern, NC in October 2012 at age 86. His wife and family contacted the Beta Phi Foundation, looking for a way to honor Charles. The Foundation suggested that we fully endow this joint scholarship with their legacy donation. The Glasgow family was very supportive of this approach.
Recipients to date of the Glasgow/Kent Scholarship award recognizing the brother with the most improved GPA are:
Charlotte and Charlie Hetrick Scholarship
Charlie enrolled at Purdue in the Fall of 1959 and was initiated into Pi Kappa Alpha in November 1960. He graduated from Purdue with a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering in May 1963. He stayed in West Lafayette an additional year, earning a master’s degree in administration from Krannert in the Spring of 1964.
It was a busy time for Beta Phi when Charlie was at Purdue. The chapter was building a new house at 629 University Street. While there were about 60 people living in the house at 149 Andrew Place, the new house could hold 80 men. Charlie was President of the chapter as they were raising funds for construction and working to build the size of the chapter to fill the new house. This required renting a temporary “annex” house for the additional members. The house at 629 University opened in the Fall of 1964, after Charlie graduated.
Ralph Simon asked Charlie to join the Home Association Board in the late 1960s. Charlie took over Ralph’s responsibilities as Treasurer in the 1970s. About that time, Rich Russell joined the Home Association Board and quickly became President. Rich and Charlie served together as President and Treasurer of the Home Association for several years.
Charlie was also involved with the establishment of the Beta Phi Foundation. He worked closely with Kinder Brothers Construction to coordinate the remodel of the house in the early 2000s.
Charlie met his wife Charlotte during the summer before starting graduate school at Krannert. Charlotte graduated from Purdue with a degree in Home Economics in 1964 and later went on to earn a master’s degree in education. They were married in 1965. Their two children and all four grandchildren also graduated from Purdue.
This scholarship was established by the Beta Phi Foundation to recognize Charlie’s decades of service and leadership to Pi Kappa Alpha at Purdue. The scholarship honors a brother who has demonstrated leadership to the chapter. Recipients to date include:
Sean O’Sullivan
Jack May
Will Messmer
Ben Harris
Kamdon Dodson
Wendell Pieper Scholarship
Wendell was raised in Vincennes, Indiana. He was initiated into the Beta Phi chapter in October of 1963 and graduated from Purdue in 1965 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering. Wendell went on to earn a Master of Engineering degree from Oklahoma University.
His career included working for Celanese Corporation for over 35 years in a variety of roles including engineering, business and strategic planning. This work took Wendell to Bay City, Corpus Christi and Dallas, Texas, New York City and Frankfurt, Germany. Wendell is named on two U.S. patents which he partially credits to his Purdue Chemical Engineering education.
Wendell has many favorite memories of his time at Purdue and Pi Kappa Alpha. He enjoyed attending the basketball and football games and playing intramural sports at the Recreation Center. Wendell also fondly remembers the parties and dances at the PiKA House, spending time with his Beta Phi brothers and preparing for the pledge blueberry pie eating contest.
Wendell has two children and six grandchildren. He and his wife Carol are avid travelers and have visited all 50 states and over 50 countries.
The Wendell Pieper Scholarship, endowed through Purdue University in 2007, has been awarded to nine Pi Kappa Alpha Beta Phi Chapter members to date. This scholarship is awarded based on academic merit to chapter members currently living in the house.
Undergraduate members can apply for this scholarship through the Purdue University Scholarship portal.
Edward Louis Neufer Scholarship
Ed’s career included working for the Colonial Mortgage Company in South Bend, Indiana and as the owner of the Safety Equipment and Supply Company as well as Fire Systems, Inc. Ed also had a successful career as a realtor with ReMax. He was very active in his community, participating on numerous boards and dedicated to supporting local businesses around Fort Wayne. Ed served as President of the Fort Wayne Business Forum and was a recipient of the Sagamore of the Wabash Award.
Ed had a deep passion for Purdue University. In 1982, he redesigned Purdue Pete’s hard hat. Ed served as President of the Purdue Alumni Association and helped raise charitable contributions for multiple Purdue Foundations. He attended every Purdue function he could, loved spending time at the Pike house and rarely missed a home football or basketball game.
Ed passed away in September 2020.
A scholarship was endowed with Purdue in October 2020 by Scott C. Schurz in honor and in memory of his friend Ed Neufer. The primary purpose of this scholarship fund is to provide an annual award for a member of the Beta Phi chapter who is classified as a sophomore and was a member of the previous year’s pledge class. Award qualifications include a student who has best demonstrated both leadership among peers and academic merit while upholding the ideals of friendship, truth, honor, and loyalty that are the visions of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity’s founders.
Phillip Kingsley/Dale Louiso Scholarship
Pin Number 506, Dale Louiso graduated from Purdue in 1954 with a Bachelor of Science degree from the College of Science, Management Administration. Dale was raised in Anderson, Indiana. While at Purdue, he was part of the Debris staff and a member of Omega Chi Epsilon and Phi Eta Sigma.
Brothers Kingsley and Louiso were roommates in the PiKA House on Andrew Place. And, they approached the newly established Beta Phi Foundation to help establish a scholarship for current members of the fraternity. The Foundation was not yet prepared to invest and help endow scholarship awards and, in 1996, helped these brothers establish their scholarship through Purdue University and the Purdue Research Foundation.
To date, 39 scholarships with a total value of $30,000 have been awarded to undergraduate members of the Beta Phi chapter through the Kingsley/Louiso endowed scholarship.
The qualifications for this scholarship include financial need in addition to academic merit and chapter leadership to a chapter member currently living in the fraternity house.
Undergraduate members can apply for this scholarship through the Purdue University Scholarship portal.
Beta Phi Foundation Scholarship
To date, 37 scholarships have been awarded with a total value of $29,500.
The qualifications for this scholarship award include financial need in addition to academic merit and chapter leadership to a chapter member currently living in the fraternity house.
Undergraduate members can apply for this scholarship through the Purdue University Scholarship portal.