Nu Alpha Kappa () is an American collegiate Latino-based

fraternity A fraternity (; whence, "wikt:brotherhood, brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club (organization), club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular ...

.Lurding, Carroll and Becque, Fran. (January 18, 2021)
Nu Alpha Kappa
.
Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities
'. Urbana: University of Illinois. Accessed August 27, 2023. Nu Alpha Kappa was founded on the campus of

California Polytechnic State University California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo or Cal Poly) is a public university in San Luis Obispo County, California, United States, - Cites the location of the university and shows that the university ...

in 1988. Nu Alpha Kappa was a charter member of the

National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations The National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations (NALFO) is an umbrella council for seventeen American Latino fraternities and sororities. It was established in 1998. The purpose of NALFO is to promote and foster positive interfraternal ...

(NALFO). It is now a member of the

North American Interfraternity Conference The North American Interfraternity Conference (or NIC; formerly known as the National Interfraternity Conference) is an association of college, intercollegiate men's List of social fraternities and sororities, social Fraternities and sororities ...

History

The fraternity began with fifteen friends at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, California who wanted to create a club for Hispanic students at the predominantly Anglo campus. Initially, the group called itself "Naco", after Spanish slang for a person who gets along well with everyone. This became Nu Alpha Kappa on February 26, 1988. The fraternity was established based on a commitment to "Carnalismo" or brotherhood, the search for knowledge, and the retention and pride of culture. Eleven of the original organizing friends became the fraternity's founders, including:A second chapter was established at San Jose State University in 1989, followed by a chapter at

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1897, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CS ...

in 1990. Its first chapter outside of California was chartered at

Colorado State University Colorado State University (Colorado State or CSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fort Collins, Colorado, United States. It is the flagship university of the Colorado State University Syst ...

in 1999. However, the majority of its 28 chapters are in California. The fraternity's national headquarters is in

Roseville, California Roseville is the most populous city in Placer County, California, located within the Sacramento metropolitan area. As of 2019, the United States Census Bureau, US Census Bureau estimated the city's population to be 141,500, making it the third-l ...

Symbols

The name was selected to represent the "nac" sound in ''Xinaco''. ''Xinaco'' (CHI-Na-Kos), a

Nahuatl Nahuatl ( ; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahuas, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have smaller popul ...

word used by the

Olmecs The Olmecs () or Olmec were an early known major Mesoamerican civilization, flourishing in the modern-day Mexican states of Veracruz and Tabasco from roughly 1200 to 400 Before the Common Era, BCE during Mesoamerica's Mesoamerican chronolog ...

, describes "an educated, amiable individual whose personality and charisma transcends and enlightens all cultures and social". The fraternity's colors are red, white, and bronze. Its mascot is XiNAKo. Its motto is "Men of Mind, Men of Culture, Men of Pride."

Philanthropy

Nu Alpha Kappa supports the

National Marrow Donor Program NMDP, formerly known as the National Marrow Donor Program and Be The Match, is a nonprofit organization founded in 1987 and based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, that operates a registry of volunteer hematopoietic cell donors and umbilical cord blood ...

(NMDP) and its Hispanic/Latino Stem Cell and Marrow Initiative in California, Colorado, and Nevada. Its other charity is the NAKLand Children's Carnival.

Chapters

Collegiate chapters

Nu Alpha Kappa has established collegiate chapters in California, Nevada, and Colorado. Active chapters are indicated in bold. Inactive chapters and institutions are in ''italics''.

Alumni chapters

The National Alumni Association was officially established in 2014. Following is a list of the Nu Alpha Kappa alumni chapters. Active chapters are indicated in bold. Inactive chapters are in ''italics''.

Member and chapter misconduct

Nu Alpha Kappa has faced multiple allegations of hazing, misconduct, and policy violations across several of its chapters. In 2015, the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

chapter was shut down following reports of hazing and sexual assault allegations against members of the fraternity. The chapter was among three Greek organizations at UCSB that lost university recognition due to violations of student conduct policies, including allegations of providing alcohol to minors and fostering an unsafe environment within fraternity-sponsored events. In 2020, the

chapter was placed on interim suspension as part of a broader crackdown on Greek organizations following allegations of alcohol-related violations and hazing. The university's investigation later found that members of Nu Alpha Kappa at SDSU were guilty of theft, leading to the chapter's suspension in early 2021. In 2023, the

San José State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State Universit ...

chapter was issued a cease and desist order, temporarily halting its operations due to alleged violations of university policies. While details of the allegations were not publicly disclosed, the order was part of a broader review of fraternity and sorority conduct at the university.

References

External links

* {{National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations Student organizations established in 1988 North American Interfraternity Conference Student societies in the United States Hispanic and Latino American organizations Latino fraternities and sororities 1988 establishments in California Former members of National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations