Kappa Alpha Theta (), commonly referred to simply as Theta, is an international
sorority
In North America, fraternities and sororities ( and ) are social clubs at colleges and universities. They are sometimes collectively referred to as Greek life or Greek-letter organizations, as well as collegiate fraternities or collegiate sorori ...
founded on January 27, 1870, at
DePauw University
DePauw University ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Greencastle, Indiana, United States. It was founded in 1837 as Indiana Asbury College and changed its name to DePauw University in 1884. The college has a Methodist heritage and was ...
in
Greencastle, Indiana
Greencastle is a city in Greencastle Township, Putnam County, Indiana, United States, and the county seat of Putnam County. It is located near Interstate 70 approximately halfway between Terre Haute and Indianapolis in the west-central portion ...
. It was the first
Greek-letter fraternity established for women.
[ The main archive URL i]
The Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage
The organization has 147 chapters at colleges and universities in the United States and Canada. The organization was the first women's fraternity to establish a chapter in Canada.
Theta's total living initiated membership, as of 2020, was more than 250,000.
There are more than 200 alumnae chapters and circles worldwide.
Kappa Alpha Theta is a member of the
National Panhellenic Conference
The National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) is an umbrella or trade association for 26 national and international women's sororities throughout the United States and Canada. '' Panhellenic'' () refers to the group's members being autonomous social ...
(NPC), an umbrella organization that encompasses 26 social sororities found throughout North America. The organization's own headquarters are located in
Indianapolis
Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...
, Indiana.
History
The ''Alpha chapter'' of Kappa Alpha Theta was founded at Indiana Asbury University, now
DePauw University
DePauw University ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Greencastle, Indiana, United States. It was founded in 1837 as Indiana Asbury College and changed its name to DePauw University in 1884. The college has a Methodist heritage and was ...
in
Greencastle, Indiana
Greencastle is a city in Greencastle Township, Putnam County, Indiana, United States, and the county seat of Putnam County. It is located near Interstate 70 approximately halfway between Terre Haute and Indianapolis in the west-central portion ...
, on January 27, 1870. The university began admitting women in 1867 after 30 years of a male-only student body. However, women were excluded from male-only clubs and societies. In response to the lack of women's organizations, the fraternity's founding members established the first Greek letter women's organization. The founders were Elizabeth McReynolds Locke Hamilton (Bettie Locke), Alice Olive Allen Brant (Alice Allen), Elizabeth Tipton Lindsey (Bettie Tipton), and Hannah Virginia Fitch Shaw (Hannah Fitch).
Bettie Locke developed the idea for a Greek letter women's society through the encouragement of her father, a professor at Indiana Asbury and a member of
Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi (), commonly known as Beta, is a North American social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. One of North America's oldest fraternities, , it consist ...
, and the members of
Phi Gamma Delta
Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Phi Gam and sometimes written as FIJI, is a North American social fraternity with 139 active chapters and 13 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania ...
at Indiana Asbury, which included her brother. Initially, the Phi Gamma Delta men offered Locke their badge as a token of their friendship, but voted against initiating her as a member. Locke refused to wear the badge as she did not know the secrets and purposes the badge represented, since she was unable to become a member. Ultimately, the fraternity gifted her a symbolic silver fruit basket instead to represent their relationship and fondness for her.
Upon discovering that there were no Greek letter fraternities for women in existence (only
literary societies
A literary society is a group of people interested in literature. In the modern sense, this refers to a society that wants to promote one genre of writing or a specific author. Modern literary societies typically promote research, publish newslet ...
for women existed at the time), Locke decided to create her own Greek letter fraternity for women. Kappa Alpha Theta's ritual, organizational structure, badge, and coat of arms were influenced by those of Beta Theta Pi and Phi Gamma Delta due to her familial connections. Locke and her friend Alice Allen wrote a constitution, planned rituals, designed a badge, and sought out women on campus to become members. Along with Hannah Fitch and Bettie Tipton, the first initiation was held in secret on January 27, 1870, establishing the ''Alpha chapter'' of Kappa Alpha Theta.
Theta's grand convention voted to establish a magazine in 1885 and to place its editorship with ''Kappa chapter'' at Kansas. In the intervening years, Kappa Alpha Theta's magazine has undergone a change of title from ''The Journal'' to ''The Kappa Alpha Theta Magazine'' and a change of publication schedule (from monthly to quarterly). ''The Kappa Alpha Theta Magazine'' currently is published in April, June, September, and December of each year.
In 1887, Theta became an international organization with the establishment of the ''Sigma chapter'' at the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...
. This became the first Canadian women's fraternity.
G. William Domhoff
George William "Bill" Domhoff (born August 6, 1936) is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus and research professor of psychology and sociology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a founding faculty member of UCSC's Cowell College. He ...
, writing in ''
Who Rules America?
''Who Rules America?'' is a book by research psychologist and sociologist G. William Domhoff, Ph.D., published in 1967 as a best-seller (#12).
''WRA'' is frequently assigned as a sociology textbook, documenting the dangerous concentration of po ...
'', listed Kappa Alpha Theta as one of "the four or five sororities with nationwide prestige" in the mid-1960s.
Symbols
The Kappa Alpha Theta motto is "Faith, hope, love--these three, but the greatest of these is love". The badge is a kite-shaped shield with a gold border and a black enamel center with two diamond stars and.a white chevron with the Greek letters .
Its new member pin is a black and gold square.
Kappa Alpha Theta's colors are
black
Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
and
gold
Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
.
Its symbols are both the
kite
A kite is a tethered heavier than air flight, heavier-than-air craft with wing surfaces that react against the air to create Lift (force), lift and Drag (physics), drag forces. A kite consists of wings, tethers and anchors. Kites often have ...
and twin stars. Its flower is the black and gold
pansy
The garden pansy (''Viola'' × ''wittrockiana'') is a type of polychromatic large-flowered hybrid plant cultivated as a garden flower. It is derived by hybridization from several species in the section ''Melanium'' ("the pansies") of the ge ...
.
The fraternity does not recognize an official stone.
Its publication is ''The Kappa Alpha Theta Magazine''.
Chapters
Kappa Alpha Theta has more than 143 active college chapters and more than 212 alumnae chapters across the United States and Canada. Alumnae chapters are alumnae groups that have been granted charters from Grand Council. The following is a list of the chapters of Kappa Alpha Theta:
Philanthropy
The Kappa Alpha Theta Foundation was founded in 1960 and is the philanthropic arm of the organization. The Theta Foundation awards annual undergraduate and graduate scholarships to its members, awarding more than $1.1 million per year. In addition to scholarships, the Theta Foundation also supports the sorority's educational programs as well as its international philanthropy,
Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA). Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA's) are community volunteers who serve as the voice for abused and neglected foster care children who are going through the court system. CASA's are appointed by a judge and their purpose is to ensure all legal actions made are in the child's best interest. In order to directly volunteer at CASA you must be 21 years of age or older.
Notable members
Some notable alumni of Kappa Alpha Theta include
Agnes de Mille
Agnes George de Mille (September 18, 1905 – October 7, 1993) was an American dancer and choreographer.
Early years
Agnes de Mille was born in New York City into a well-connected family of theater professionals. Her father William C. deMill ...
,
Laura Bush
Laura Lane Welch Bush (née Welch; born November 4, 1946) is an American educator who was the first lady of the United States from 2001 to 2009 as the wife of George W. Bush, the 43rd president of the United States. Bush was previously the fir ...
,
Barbara Bush
Barbara Bush (; June 8, 1925 – April 17, 2018) was the first lady of the United States from 1989 to 1993, as the wife of the 41st president of the United States, George H. W. Bush. She was previously second lady of the United States fr ...
,
Jenna Bush,
Tory Burch
Tory Burch (née Robinson; born June 17, 1966) is an American fashion designer, businesswoman, and philanthropist. She is the executive chairman and chief creative officer of her own brand, Tory Burch LLC. She was listed as the 88th most power ...
,
Melinda French Gates
Melinda French Gates (born Melinda Ann French; August 15, 1964) is an American philanthropist. Born and raised in Dallas, Texas, she was educated at Ursuline Academy of Dallas, Duke University, and Duke's Fuqua School of Business. Shortly afte ...
,
Amy Holmes
Amy Mulenga Holmes (born July 25, 1973) is a Zambian-born American journalist and political commentator. Holmes co-hosted, with fellow commentator Michael Gerson, a politically conservative-oriented talk show on PBS titled ''In Principle.'' She i ...
,
Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and actress. She is noted for her Optimism, optimistic and Idealism, idealistic subject matter, and incorporation of genres including Rock music, rock, Po ...
,
Gretchen Whitmer
Gretchen Esther Whitmer (; born August 23, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the 49th governor of Michigan since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, she served in the Michigan House of R ...
,
Kerri Strug,
Rue McClanahan
Eddi-Rue McClanahan (February 21, 1934 – June 3, 2010) was an American actress. She was best known for her roles on television sitcoms, including Maude (TV series)#Characters, Vivian Cavender Harmon on ''Maude (TV series), Maude'' (1972–78), ...
,
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant (born November 25, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She began her music career in contemporary Christian music (CCM) before crossing over to pop music in the mid-1980s. Grant has been referred to as "Honorific ...
,
Jennifer Cook,
Tiffany Trump and
Julia Woods.
Laura Bush was a member of the ''Beta Sigma chapter'' at
Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a Private university, private research university in Dallas, Texas, United States, with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico. SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, ...
in
University Park, Texas
University Park is a city in Dallas County, Texas, United States, in suburban Dallas. The population was 25,278 at the 2020 census. The city is home to Southern Methodist University.
University Park is bordered on the north, east and west by Dal ...
. Her daughters Barbara and Jenna Bush were members at
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
and the
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public university, public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 stud ...
, respectively. Tory Burch, an American fashion designer, businesswoman, and philanthropist was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta at the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...
, an
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...
university in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
. Amy Holmes, an American journalist and political commentator, was a member of Kappa Alpha Theta at
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...
. Sheryl Crow was a member at the
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...
in
Columbia, Missouri
Columbia is a city in Missouri, United States. It was founded in 1821 as the county seat of Boone County, Missouri, Boone County and had a population of 126,254 as recorded in the 2020 United States census, making it the List of cities in Misso ...
. Gretchen Whitmer, Michigan's current governor, was a Theta at
Michigan State University
Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...
in
East Lansing, Michigan
East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County, although a small portion extends north into Clinton County. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 47,741. The city is located immediate ...
. Amy Grant, an American singer, was a member of the ''Alpha Eta chapter'' at
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...
in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
.
The first women admitted to
Phi Beta Kappa
The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...
honor society were Thetas.
Local chapter misconduct
In 2000, the chapter at the
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati, informally Cincy) is a public university, public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1819 and had an enrollment of over 53,000 students in 2024, making it the ...
in
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...
was temporarily suspended for
hazing
Hazing (American English), initiation, beasting (British English), bastardisation (Australian English), ragging (South Asian English) or deposition refers to any activity expected of someone in joining or participating in a group that humiliates, ...
. The pledges were forced to endure several demeaning tasks, one of which included crawling up the steps of the sorority house for the amusement of their big sisters.
In 2000, the chapter at
Rollins College
Rollins College is a Liberal arts college, private liberal arts college in Winter Park, Florida. It was founded in November 1885 and has about 30 undergraduate majors and several master's programs. Florida's fourth oldest post-secondary institut ...
in
Winter Park, Florida
Winter Park is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 29,795 according to the 2020 census. It is part of the Greater Orlando, Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Winter Park was foun ...
was shut down after a drinking party sent newly pledged members to the hospital. One member passed out and was placed on a respirator that night.
In 2008, the chapter at
Colgate University
Colgate University is a Private university, private college in Hamilton, New York, United States. The Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college was founded in 1819 as the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York ...
in
Hamilton, New York
Hamilton is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Madison County, New York, Madison County, New York (state), New York, United States. The population was 6,379 at the 2020 census. The town is named after American Founding Father ...
was suspended for four years after an alcohol-hazing related incident.
In 2014, the chapter at
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
was under national scrutiny after hosting a racially and ethnically insensitive event that went viral. Some of the costumes worn by sorority members were based on stereotypes meant to represent Mexico, Japan, the Netherlands, Ireland, Jamaica, and other countries. The sorority publicly apologized for the event.
In 2016, the 137-year old chapter at the
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...
in
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...
was suspended by the university for underage drinking and hazing. The chapter was disbanded by the national organization a few weeks later for violating the suspension.
In 2018, chapters at the
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi (Epithet, byname Ole Miss) is a Public university, public research university in University, near Oxford, Mississippi, United States, with a University of Mississippi Medical Center, medical center in Jackson, Miss ...
in
Oxford, Mississippi
Oxford is the List of municipalities in Mississippi, 14th most populous city in Mississippi, United States, and the county seat of Lafayette County, Mississippi, Lafayette County, southeast of Memphis, Tennessee, Memphis. A college town, Oxford ...
and
Clemson University
Clemson University () is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university near Clemson, South Carolina, United States. - The blue-shaded pattern denotes university property. This shows Clemson University is ''out ...
in
Clemson, South Carolina
Clemson () is a city in Pickens County, South Carolina, Pickens and Anderson County, South Carolina, Anderson counties in the U.S. state of South Carolina. Clemson is adjacent to Clemson University, - The blue-shaded pattern denotes university pr ...
were closed for failure to meet quota. There was a great deal of opposition, since members felt they were being unfairly punished, simply for being less popular than other
National Panhellenic Conference
The National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) is an umbrella or trade association for 26 national and international women's sororities throughout the United States and Canada. '' Panhellenic'' () refers to the group's members being autonomous social ...
(NPC) sororities on campus, and not for risk management or academic issues.
In February 2022, the members of the Eta Mu chapter at
Occidental College
Occidental College (informally Oxy) is a private liberal arts college in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1887 as a coeducational college by clergy and members of the Presbyterian Church, it became non-sectarian in 1910. It is ...
in
Los Angeles voted to disband the chapter following a controversy with a member, who reportedly sent anti-Asian and anti-Black messages in a private group chat among friends in a December 2020 incident that did not surface until two years later.
In February 2022, the chapter at
Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a Private university, private research university in Dallas, Texas, United States, with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico. SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, ...
(SMU) was placed on a two-year suspension by the university for pressuring pledges to drink large amounts of alcohol and other hazing activities that endangered their safety and mental health. The chapter was sanctioned for a similar violation in 2020. After being suspended in 2022, members of the chapter created an off-campus based organization known as "The Society" to continue to recruit new members and uphold the chapter's legacy. SMU officials stated "The Society" was another violation of the Student Code of Conduct and worked to disband the organization and penalize fraternities seen socializing with them. Also the CEO of Kappa Alpha Theta, Jennifer Schmaltz, delayed the return of the chapter an additional year because she did not like its similarities to the sorority. Parents of "The Society" members hired lawyers on behalf of their daughters to fight to keep the organization until the official return of Kappa Alpha Theta at SMU.
See also
*
List of social sororities and women's fraternities
Social, traditional, or collegiate sororities, in the North American fraternal system, are those that do not promote a particular profession, as professional fraternities do, or discipline, such as service fraternities and sororities. Instead, ...
References
External links
Kappa Alpha Theta FraternityKappa Alpha Theta FoundationKappa Alpha Theta Heritage
{{DePauw University
1870 establishments in Indiana
DePauw University
Fraternities and sororities in the United States
National Panhellenic Conference
Student organizations established in 1870
Student societies in the United States
Women's organizations based in the United States
Sororities
Women in Indianapolis