Tau Beta Pi

The Engineering Honor Society

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Loans & Grants

Tau Beta Pi Student Loans

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The resources of Tau Beta Pi's Student Loan Fund are available to members who otherwise would be without sufficient money to remain in college and complete their courses. Loans of $25 to $2,500 are made for up to three years, and the interest rate is six percent per annum on the unpaid balance beginning from the time the loan is made. (After three years the interest accrues at 10 percent.)

An application for a loan to an undergraduate must be approved by a department head and the chapter president, recording secretary, and treasurer. Loans are available to new members for the amount of the initiation fee. Notes must be co-signed by financially independent persons, such as a parent.

Tau Beta Pi Student Assistance Fund

The Tau Beta Pi Student Assistance Fund was endowed in 1992 through the interest and generosity of C.C. Young, IL Alpha '24. Its purpose is to make funds available to student members of his and other chapters who would otherwise be without sufficient financial resources to remain in college. Repayment is not required and no interest is charged.

The Student Assistance Program has been operated by Headquarters staff since its inception and tenets include:

  • Financial aid in any amount from $100-$1,000 may be provided. Request for grants greater than $1,000 shall be forwarded to the EC for approval or disapproval.

  • There is no requirement to repay the aid received, nor is any interest charged. These are grants, not loans.

  • Students are to be asked to help others in need when and if they become financially secure.

  • An application for student assistance funds must be made in letter addressed to the Executive Director containing the applicant's name, chapter, reason for the grant request, and amount requested. This application should include the endorsement of the student's chapter president and chief advisor but is not required.

CEI Chapter and Petitioners Support Grants

Chapter Endowment Initiative Grants

As part of the Chapter Endowment Initiative, chapters received funding for chapter-related projects. The Chapter Endowment Initiative provides permanent funding for students of the endowed chapter to attend the TBP Convention, receive officer training through the District Program, obtain professional development through Engineering Futures, participate and/or facilitate K-12 MindSET activities, support Headquarters (HQ) operations, and conduct chapter-directed activities on the college campus and in the local community.

Chapters will be notified on an annual basis of their chapter's current grant balance. These funds become available on August 1 and do not expire. The funds will remain in an account at HQ and will be available in future academic years.

If your chapter would like to request a CEI grant, please complete the Grant Request Form and submit to HQ. Funds may be disbursed as a credit to the chapter account, a physical check can be remitted or, in specific cases, expenses could be billed to HQ. More information about CEI grants is available in the FAQs.

Chapters eligible for CEI payouts:
California Delta, California Upsilon, Iowa Alpha, Illinois Alpha, Indiana Gamma, Louisiana Alpha, Michigan Beta, Michigan Zeta, Mississippi Alpha, New York Delta, Ohio Beta, Ohio Gamma, Ohio Epsilon, South Dakota Alpha, Texas Beta, Virginia Alpha.

Petitioners Support Grants

In December 2012, The Tau Beta Pi Association (TBP) received a generous donation from the Faidley family (Galen W., IA A 2000; LeAnn E., IA A 2000; and LeVern W., IA A 1967) to encourage expansion of TBP membership both nationally and internationally. Along with providing support to 1890 land grant universities and colleges, a portion of the donation aids petitioning groups with large minority engineering student populations. The purpose of these grants is to promote greater diversity in TBP membership and provide the opportunity for these institutions and students/graduates to participate in and benefit from TBP chapters on their campuses.

Funds will not be directly given to the petitioning schools; instead they will be used to cover expenses incurred by schools during this process. These include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Attendance by member(s) of a local society at the annual Convention

  • Attendance by member(s) of a local society at District Conferences

  • Visits by a District Director or other Association Official to the local society

  • Payment of the one-time affiliation fee ($2,000 as of December 2012)

The amount of each grant is at the discretion of the Executive Director.

Please complete the attached Application for Petitioners Support Grant, including requested amount, and submit to , Executive Director. If approved, the grant amount will be applied to your group's account at TBP Headquarters.