Tri-Alpha Honor Society

About Tri-Alpha Honor Society

Alpha Alpha Alpha, or Tri-Alpha, was founded March 24, 2018 at Moravian College (now Moravian University) in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Over 100 members of the Alpha Chapter were initiated that day, including undergraduate students, faculty, staff, alumni, and honorary members. Following the successful induction, the College took steps to incorporate Alpha Alpha Alpha so that chapters could be started on other campuses across the country. Tri-Alpha exists as a not-for-profit (501(c)3) organization, for the purposes of supporting the activities of the honors society.

The Tri-Alpha Honor Society promotes academic excellence and provides opportunities for growth, leadership development, and community service for first-generation college students.

Benefits of Tri-Alpha

• A certificate and pin signifying membership. Membership is for life.
• An outward recognition of personal accomplishment and an incentive for continued high scholarship.
• The opportunity to meet other first-generation scholars from all academic disciplines on your campus and to join them in promoting academic excellence and creating a supportive environment for first-generation college students.
• Identifies you to employers, professionals, and graduate schools as a person of superior academic ability and commitment.
• Ability to mentor younger first-generation students. Ability to receive mentoring from more senior first-generation students, as well as faculty, staff, and alumni who were first-generation students.
• Local chapter leadership opportunities.

Students qualify for induction into Tri-Alpha if they meet the following criteria:

• The student has earned at least 30 credit/semester hours (or 45 quarter hours) towards an associate's degree or baccalaureate degree (including half-time) AND
• The undergraduate student has achieved an overall undergraduate GPA of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale. (For schools using a pass, high pass, etc. system, a "high pass" average is required.)
• Neither of the student's parents, nor step-parents, nor legal guardians, completed a bachelor's degree (or, for students at a community college, the parents did not complete an associate's degree)
• Graduate students who are first-generation students can be admitted if they have completed the equivalent of at least one term of study (9 or more graduate credits) and have a GPA in their graduate program of at least 3.5. (NOTE: The executive board voted to change the GPA requirement to 3.5, but now allows for part-time students in graduate programs to be admitted.). (For schools using a pass, high pass, etc. system, a "high pass" average is required.)

Advisors for the Alpha Mu Chapter at William Paterson University

Paolah Chaparro
Professional Academic Advisor of the Gloria S. Williams Advisement Center

Sonia Wilson
Assistant Director of Career Development

For questions, please email us at FirstGen@wpunj.edu