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Founded on the campus of Howard University in Washington, DC in 1908, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority is the oldest Greek-letter organization established by African American college-trained women. To trace its history is to tell a story of changing patterns of human relations in America in the 20th century.

The small group of women who organized the Sorority was conscious of a privileged position as college-trained women of color, just one generation removed from slavery. They were resolute that their college experiences should be as meaningful and productive as possible. Alpha Kappa Alpha was founded to apply that determination.

As the Sorority grew, it kept in balance two important themes: the importance of the individual and the strength of an organization of women of ability and courage. As the world became more complex, there was a need for associations which cut across racial, geographical, political, physical and social barriers.

Alpha Kappa Alpha’s influence extends beyond campus quads and student interest. It has a legacy of service that deepens, rather than ends, with college graduation.

The goals of its program activities center on significant issues in families, communities, government halls and world assembly chambers. Its efforts constitute a priceless part of the global experience in the 21st century.

Delta History

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority was founded on January 13, 1913 by twenty-two collegiate women at Howard University. These students wanted to use their collective strength to promote academic excellence and to provide assistance to persons in need. The first public act performed by the Delta Founders involved their participation in the Women's Suffrage March in Washington D.C., March 1913. Delta Sigma Theta was incorporated in 1930.

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. is a private, non-profit organization whose purpose is to provide assistance and support through established programs in local communities throughout the world. A sisterhood of more than 200,000 predominately Black college educated women, the Sorority currently has over 900 chapters located in the United States, England, Japan (Tokyo and Okinawa), Germany, the Virgin Islands, Bermuda, the Bahamas and the Republic of Korea. The major programs of the sorority are based upon the organization's Five Point Thrust of:

Economic Development
Educational Development
International Awareness and Involvement
Physical and Mental Health
Political Awareness and Involvement

Birth of Omega

On Friday evening, November 17, 1911, three Howard University undergraduate students, with the assistance of their faculty adviser, gave birth to the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity. This event occurred in the office of biology Professor Ernest E. Just, the faculty adviser, in the Science Hall (now known as Thirkield Hall). The three liberal arts students were Edgar A. Love, Oscar J. Cooper and Frank Coleman. From the initials of the Greek phrase meaning "friendship is essential to the soul," the name Omega Psi Phi was derived. The phrase was selected as the motto. Manhood, scholarship, perseverance and uplift were adopted as cardinal principles. A decision was made regarding the design for the pin and emblem, and thus ended the first meeting of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity .
The next meeting was conducted on November 23, 1911. Edgar Love became the first Grand Basileus (National President). Cooper and Coleman were selected Grandkeeper of the Records (National Secretary) and Grandkeeper of Seals (National Treasurer), respectively. Eleven Howard University undergraduate men were selected as charter members.

Alpha Chapter was organized with fourteen charter members on December 15, 1911. Love, Cooper and Coleman were elected the chapter's first Basileus, Keeper of Records, and Keeper of Seals, respectively. On March 8, 1912, the previously submitted fraternity constitution was rejected by the Howard University Faculty Council. The Faculty Council proposed to accept the fraternity as a local but not a national organization. The fraternity refused acceptance as a strictly local organization.

Oscar Cooper became the fraternity's second Grand Basileus in 1912. Cooper authorized the investigation of a proposed second chapter at Lincoln University, Pennsylvania. Edgar Love was elected as the third Grand Basileus in 1912 and served until 1915. In 1914, Howard University withdrew its opposition, and the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity was incorporated under the laws of the District of Columbia on October 28, 1914. Beta Chapter at Lincoln University was chartered in February, 1914. George E. Hall, the fourth Grand Basileus, had been initiated at Alpha Chapter in 1914. Grand Basileus Hall authorized the establishment of Gamma Chapter in Boston, Massachusetts. However, the chapter was eventually established during the administration of the fifth Grand Basileus, James C. McMorries. During the administration of the sixth Grand Basileus, Clarence F. Holmes, the fraternity's first official hymn, "Omega Men Draw Nigh", was written by Otto Bohannon. Raymond G. Robinson, the seventh Grand Basileus, established Delta Chapter in Nashville, Tennessee in 1919. Robinson left office in 1920 with a total of ten chapters in operation. Stanley Douglas served as Editor of the first Oracle published in the spring of 1919. Harold K. Thomas, the eighth Grand Basileus, was elected at the 1920 Nashville Grand Conclave. It was at this Conclave that Carter G. Woodson inspired the establishment of National Achievement Week to promote the study of Negro life and history. The 1921 Atlanta Grand Conclave brought to an end the first decade of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity.

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"Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Incorporated" (ΩΨΦ) was founded on Friday, November 17, 1911, at Howard University in Washington, D.C. by three undergraduate students and one faculty advisor. At the time, the founders of Omega Psi Phi were Howard University juniors Edgar Amos Love, Oscar James Cooper and Frank Kennith Coleman. The first faculty advisor was Dr. Ernest Everett Just, who early on was accorded the status of founder by the three undergraduates. Each of the founders had distinguished careers in their chosen fields: Bishop Edgar Love,who became a bishop of the United Methodist Church; Dr. Oscar Cooper, who was a prominent physician who practiced in Philadelphia over 50 years; Professor Frank Coleman,who was the chairman of the Department of Physics at Howard University for many years; and Dr. Ernest E. Just,who was a world-renowned biologist.The fraternity is the first black national fraternal organization to be founded at a historically black college.

From its inception, the fraternity has worked to build a strong and effective force of men dedicated to its Cardinal Principles of manhood, scholarship, perseverance, uplift, and capable of giving expression to the hopes and aspirations of an unfree people in the land of the free. In 1927, at the urging of fraternity member Carter G. Woodson, the fraternity made National Negro Achievement Week an annual observance, and it continues today as Black History Month.

Since 1945, the fraternity has undertaken a National Social Action Program to meet the needs of African Americans in the areas of health, housing, civil rights, and education. Omega Psi Phi has been a patron of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) since 1955, provides an annual gift of $50,000 to the UNCF, and is a National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) member.

The terms "Fraternity" and "Sorority"(from the Latin words frater and soror, meaning "brother" and "sister" respectively) may be used to describe many social and charitable organizations.

The term "fraternities", often colloquially shortened to "frats", generally refers to all-male or mixed-sex organizations; the female-only equivalent is usually called a sorority, a word first used in 1874 at Gamma Phi Beta at Syracuse University—before this, societies for either gender were called "fraternities." To this day, some women's organizations prefer to be called "women's fraternities". Outside North America, they are also referred to as "student corporations", "academic corporations", or simply "corporations".
With few exceptions (notably "Acacia", "FarmHouse", and "Triangle"), the names of North American fraternities and sororities consist of two to four Greek letters, many times abbreviating a Greek motto. For this reason, fraternities and sororities are known collectively as a Greek System or Greek Society and its members as Greeks. The use of Greek letters started with the first such organization, Phi Beta Kappa, which used Greek letters to hide their secret name.
Outside North America, organizations like college fraternities are rare. A notable exception is The Philippines, which maintains a large fraternity and sorority system.

The purposes and types of fraternities

There are various types of fraternities: General (social), service, professional, and honorary. The most recognizable form of fraternity is the social fraternity. Most of these fraternities were founded on dedication to principles such as community service, academic achievement, and leadership qualities.
Many fraternities and sororities are national or international organizations with chapters at individual schools. The organizations' headquarters or "Nationals" may place certain requirements on individual chapters to standardize rituals and policies regarding membership, housing, or behavior. These policies are generally codified in a constitution and bylaws which may be amended at conventions. Members of a such a fraternity or sorority may enjoy certain privileges when visiting other chapters of the same fraternity. Some fraternities and sororities are "local" and do not belong to a national organization.
Classification can also be made along religious lines, geographic extent, gender requirements (single-sex or co-ed), cultural or multicultural emphasis, and time of founding. "Secret Societies" are usually categorized separately from other types of fraternities.

Symbols

Fraternities and sororities often have a number of symbols by which they are identified, such as colors or flowers, in addition to a badge (or pin), crest, and/or seal. An open motto (indicating that the organization has a "secret motto" as well) is a public motto that is used to express the unique ideals and/or standards of a fraternity or sorority. Most symbols are built from the collective experience of the organization; paddle design, for example, is a highly meticulous and precise art for many houses.
An obvious symbol of a fraternity or sorority is their Greek letters. Often displayed in front of or on a chapter house, the Greek letters of a fraternity or sorority are the most visible means to distinguish themselves from others. They will also be worn on clothing as an identifier for recruitment activities or general exposure.