**Editor’s Note: “Since the time of this report, The Wood Word has received word that the fraternity has been temporarily suspended because of alleged hazing activities. The Wood Word will follow-up with another report in the next few weeks.”

Oliver La Rocco, Eric LiPuma, James Weber, and Robert Miller founded Mu Sigma Pi, a new fraternity, to create a sense of unity and brotherhood between male students at Marywood. The men hope the fraternity will not only unite men on campus, but also increase the male enrollment at Marywood.

The founding brothers endured a long approval process. The four men started writing their mission statement and constitution when they began their freshman year    at Marywood. They are now sophomores and the fraternity was finalized after two semesters of meetings with Carl Oliveri, former director of Student Activities, and doing an extensive amount of research on fraternities, editing the constitution, and mapping out a RUSH, the recruitment process, and pledge process.

Once approved, the founders appointed positions and added more founding fathers. There are thirteen founding fathers: sophomore Oliver La Rocco, president; sophomore Eric LiPuma, vice president;

sophomore James Weber, treasurer; sophomore Robert Miller, secretary; sophomore Alex Martino, philanthropist; sophomore Grant Falotovich, social chairman; sophomore Tim Sroka, recruitment chairman; sophomore Tom Muscarello, recruitment chairman; sophomore Mike Harris, risk manager; sophomore Brian Madine; sophomore Steve Killian; sophomore Dakota Rose; and sophomore Conner Marsh.

Although the fraternity is just starting out, the young men have high hopes.

“We plan on the fraternity going national in a couple of years,” says La Rocco.  “As of right now, the fraternity is what is known as a ‘local fraternity,’ which means we are the only chapter of Mu Sigma Pi. But we have some friends at different universities who are interested in picking up a chapter. As soon as this is finalized we will be a national fraternity.”

Mu Sigma Pi will be making contributions to the Marywood community as well. The men have planned an Easter canned goods drive. The fraternity also plans to host a field day for the younger children in the area.

“We want to create a good reputation in the community and university,” said Sroka.

The members of the fraternity will also be required to meet a certain amount of study hours and gym hours. They hope this will increase the overall GPAs of the members, along with their physical fitness.

“Marywood should be expecting greatness from our fraternity,” said Muscarello.

Mu Sigma Pi is open to any students who will be dedicated to the fraternity and who are interested in helping the community. The fraternity does not discriminate against any race, sexual orientation, or religion.

“Mu Sigma Pi is a fraternity dedicated to the betterment of ourselves, the community, and the university,” said La Rocco.