Pre-law fraternity makes new appearance

It"s a trick question used by members of the Tulane University Chapter of Phi Alpha Delta pre-law fraternity: Did you know that Hillary and Bill Clinton are actually brothers?

The question refers to the organization"s pool of notable alumni, which includes the Clintons and several other U.S. presidents and Supreme Court justices.

A revival of the organization is under way after it became inactive at Tulane following Hurricane Katrina. Phi Alpha Delta is an international law fraternity with a mission to “advance integrity, compassion and courage through service to the student, the school, the profession and the community.”

Claudia Shi, the organization"s president, sought to re-establish the fraternity to provide support to the university"s pre-law students. The existing Pre-Law Society, she says, is geared toward students who are sure they want to attend law school.

“The Pre-Law Society hosts a lot of admission-oriented events,” says Shi. “Phi Alpha Delta is a little more exploratory. We bring in speakers who talk about what the field is like and aim to create more of a community.”

Frederick King, the on-call attorney for Tulane, was the group"s latest guest speaker.

Shi says she got the idea to reactivate the fraternity while studying in the Lavin-Bernick Center on a Sunday night. The next day, Shi sent an email to the organization"s national director and one month later she was recruiting new members.

“I"m amazed at how much progress we"ve made,” says Shi. “The challenging part was creating an organizational structure for the fraternity, but everyone took their roles very seriously.”

Samah Ahmed is a first-year student at Tulane University majoring in public health and political science. She also is a member of Phi Alpha Delta.