Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, or RPI, is a large university in Troy, New York, near Albany, founded in 1824 by Stephen Van Rensselaer. It is the oldest civilian technological university in the English-speaking world.

Notable Firsts

• 1898 - The first association of Latin American students in the United States was formed at RPI, called the Union Hispano-Americana. This organization would later merge with other like-minded organizations and form the first Latin American fraternity in the United States, Phi Iota Alpha, in 1931.