UAH alumni, students recipients of Pi Kappa Alpha prestigious awards

The Pi Kappa Alpha (ΠKA) Chapter at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) was recently honored with the prestigious Robert A. Smythe Award, during the biennial convention in Richmond, VA, to celebrate its 150^th anniversary. The award, named after the organization’s junior founder, Robert A. Smythe is the international fraternity’s most prestigious honor, and is given out once a year.

The university chapters that win this award are tops on their campus and the "best of the best," among all Pikes. The award formally acknowledges the top 10 per cent of high-performing chapters across the United States and Canada. UAH’s Theta Pi Chapter was recognized for overall chapter superiority and prominence.

Qualifications for the Smythe Awards are as follows:

• A Chapter Performance Score of at least 85.00 (out of 100)
• Active membership level of at least 65 initiates
• Alumni advisory board as deemed by regional president
• Chapter representation at all PIKE University events (including at least one Leadership Summit)

In addition to the Smythe Award, the Theta Pi Chapter won their fourth Orians Excellence Award, and recognition for Health and Safety, Recruitment, Scholarship, 100 percent participation in giving to the Pike Foundation, and for attendance at PIKE University leadership training events.

• UAH alumnus Mark Reavis (’92, MS Engineering, Engineering Management), received the Chapter Advisor of the Year award for service as a volunteer advisor for the university’s Theta Pi Chapter of ΠKA. Chapter Advisor of the Year is awarded to one person per year out of 220 chapters in the United States and Canada. Reavis also serves on the Board of Directors for the UAH Alumni Association

• David Soetekouw (’11, BSBA, Marketing), received the Outstanding Young Alumnus Award for his contribution as a volunteer for the fraternity. In addition to his service as the Vice President of the Huntsville Area Alumni Association, work on the UAH Theta Pi Chapter of ΠKA Alumni Advisory Board, and as an integral part of the 150^th ΠKA Founders Day celebration at the Davidson Center for Space Exploration (Huntsville, AL) last March. The ΠKA International Fraternity biennially seeks and accepts nominations of alumnus members under the age of 35 for the Outstanding Young Alumnus Award. The award recognizes a class of up to 12 young alumni for their professional accomplishments, contributions to their community, and their involvement as a volunteer for ΠKA while displaying the values of a True Pike.
• Tyler Brennan (’10, BS, Marketing /Acquisition Management), President of ΠKA Huntsville Area Alumni Association received the William R. Nester Award as a top 10 percent alumni association among 150 alumni associations in North America. The Nester Award recognizes alumni association excellence based on structure, communication, and activities as judged by the ΠKA International Headquarters Awards Committee. This is the fifth consecutive Nester Award given to the Huntsville Area Alumni Association. Brennan is also a member of the UAH Alumni Association Board of Directors.
• The Theta Pi Alumni Advisory Board (AAB) was awarded its sixth consecutive AAB of the Year award recognizing it as a top 10 percent AAB among 185 ΠKA AABs in North America. This year, the AAB consists of 12 members, which advise the UAH chapter on specific areas of chapter operations such as Health and Safety, Recruitment, Member Education, and Alumni Relations. The AAB is led by Mark Reavis, Chapter Advisor.

The ΠKA International Fraternity is composed of more than 275,000 lifetime members, 220 chapters and 150 alumni associations in North America. In the last 10 years, ΠKA membership grew by 51 percent and maintains the largest average chapter size of North American fraternities. Between 2014 and 2015, Pikes raised over $2.125 million dollars and contributed more than 300,000 hours in community service.

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