Alpha Pi Mu was the brainchild of James T. French,
who in 1949, was a senior industrial engineering
student at Georgia Institute of Technology. Nine
men, chosen through their affiliation with the Georgia
Tech chapter of Tau Beta Pi constituted the original
membership of Alpha Pi Mu. In 1959, full membership
in the Association of College Honor Societies (ACHS)
was attained. The major significance of Alpha Pi
Mu's association with ACHS is that it is the only
nationally accepted industrial engineering honor
society. Chapters now exist in almost every major
university which possess an accredited industrial
engineering department. While academic interests
and abilities are required for membership the society's
overall goals are much broader. The Georgia Tech
engineers who led the initial developmental work
wanted an organization to provide a common ground
on which their outstanding young engineers could
exchange ideas, and to provide experiences which
could help their future professional development.
