The Reorganization was probably the most dramatic page in the Mu Tau history, as it clearly is the most severe punishment that a National Organization can inflict on a chapter. To put it plainly, it involves getting rid of the current members of the chapter, and rushing to get a new contingent of brothers.

The roots of the reorganization (which happened on February 21, 1990) go back to the 1970's. The chapter, according to its members' recollections that were printed in The Tech at the time, started to grow apart from the National Organization. The reason for such estrangement was the Chapter's conviction that it did not need to follow the National Fraternity's principles. By 1985 the chapter understood that staying under the guild of the Alpha Epsilon Pi national did not make any sense. With this in mind, they wrote a letter addressed to Neal H. Dorow, then advisor to fraternities, sororities, and independent living groups, in which they expressed an interest in exploring the possibility of going local. A similar letter was also sent to the National. The decision of going local was never made until after the chapter was actually reorganized. (At that point the chapter did not have another option but to organize a local fraternal organization if they wanted to stay together as a group.)

The chapter therefore continued to live in the Houses owned by Mutaw Corporation, and there was nothing connecting these men with National except for the letters Alpha, Epsilon, and Pi that appeared on the fraternal composites, the door of the Annex, and on the cover of the Rush Books that they sent to incoming freshmen every summer. This was confirmed by Alfred H. Bloom, the President of the Mutaw Corporation, who assumed that post in 1988. "I sensed that the chapter wanted little to do with the National Fraternity," he recalls. The National did not seem to be aware of this divergence until a National Convention some time in the late 1980's.

What was it like living at 155 Bay State Road not long before February 21, 1990? Unfortunately we cannot give a complete answer to this question. Due to the conflict of the old chapter with National, most of the communication avenues with the alumni from 1980's have been cut. During the Alumni Telethons that our chapter currently holds, one would frequently hear on the other end of the line: "I am sorry, I do not wish to associate with Alpha Epsilon Pi." Usually such answers come from those with a graduation year in the 1980's or early 1990's.

Here is what Robert Rich '90, an old chapter member, and the only one to return as one of the new chapter's founding fathers wrote of his three years at AEPi.

During Rush Week, emphasis was placed exclusively upon the house, almost to the point of denying the chapter's membership in a larger organization.

Aside from the AEPi name, the house was little more than a local fraternity. Most of the students joining had no inkling of what was expected of them as members of a national fraternity. The MIT chapter did not socialize with other AEPi chapters and became isolated from them. The difference was in the unwillingness of the members to espouse the ideals of AEPi and to be proud of the national identity.

I became a member of the house in 1987. I knew of AEPi's identity before joining and was eager to become a part of the fraternity. Members of the chapter at MIT quickly dispelled the notion that AEPi, as such, existed here. I joined, nevertheless, hoping that this chapter would return to the ideals of AEPi, an organization of which I could be proud.

Over the next few years, several issues arose that pitted the house against the fraternity. The house voted to forbid a national representatives' presence during Rush Week. The reason for this decision was the fear that the representatives would hinder the chapter's ability to control the future of the house's character. The house did not care if the incoming students were interested in becoming AEPi brothers and living by the fraternity's ideals.

Sensing trouble, the chapter started trying to improve its relationship with the National. On the surface, it broke the ice on the interactions with the neighboring AEPi chapters, boasting joint social events with the brothers from Emerson College and Brandeis University. However this was not enough to impress AEPi National.

On February 21, 1990, three men from the National rang the bell at 155 Bay State Road. They were the Executive Vice President Sidney N. Dunn, Director of Expansion Andrew S. Borans, and the President of the Mutaw Corporation Alfred H. Bloom. They stated that the Supreme Board of Governors has ordered them to interview all the brothers and reorganize the chapter.

Rich writes: "A plan for rebuilding the chapter at MIT was outlined. Interviews were to be conducted, and those with positive attitudes and open minds would be invited to remain. The questions asked of each brother were the same set asked at every reorganization that AEPi has been obligated to preside over . . . [The questions] all addressed a person's desire to be in AEPi."

The time originally granted for each interview was 15 minutes. According to Borans, the interviewers wanted to get a sense of the attitude of each brother towards Alpha Epsilon Pi. The people were advised to "forget everything you know" about the nature of AEPi, and to begin "with a clean blackboard."

As a result of Reorganization, 45 of the 55 active members were asked to leave the fraternity. At that point all the brothers that were asked to stay chose to leave AEPi as a sign of solidarity. Among the ten that were invited to stay was Richard Wang, the chapter's Vice President. He was the only Executive Board member who was invited to remain. (Later on, one of the ten, Robert A. Rich '91 returned to AEPi in the role of one of the founding fathers of the new chapter.)

The MIT community was outraged by actions of the National. It condemned AEPi's decision to reorganize the chapter and interpreted the reorganization as a slap in the face of MIT students. Reorganization also promised housing problems for the 1990-1991 academic year since all of the 55 discharged brothers needed to be absorbed by the dormitory system. One after another MIT's reactions followed. Endorsed by Neal Dorow came the decision to expel AEPi from the InterFraternity Council, and after that the Dean of Residence James Tewhey, joined by the MIT President, announced denial of AEPi's privilege to house freshmen.

The old chapter was allowed to stay in the houses until the end of the spring '90 term, and some of the brothers stayed in the houses over the summer. The discharged AEPi members petitioned to the IFC to organize a local fraternity. Their petition was granted 36 to 0, and a new fraternity called Delta Pi appeared at MIT. Brothers then inquired about a possibility of getting a house, and were told that purchasing a house for a fraternity was not part of the recent plans of the Residence Office. Delta Pi has recently joined the National Sigma Nu fraternity and acquired a house in the Back Bay.

With the inactivation of the MIT AEPi chapter and the appearance of the local fraternity Delta Pi composed of the former AEPi, the Reorganization process ended.