Theta Nu Xi Multicultural Sorority, Inc. () is an American historically multicultural

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 April 11, 1997, at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). Theta Nu Xi was incorporated on April 29, 1999.

History

Theta Nu Xi was founded during a time when cultural Greek organizations began to proliferate on campuses across the United States. Theta Nu Xi was the first multicultural sorority founded in the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also known as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical List of regions in the United States, region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and t ...

. The sorority has since grown to more than sixty chapters and kaleidoscopes in over twenty years of existence. In the Spring of 1996, Melissa Jo Murchison-Blake sought a sisterhood that openly embraced all women and crossed cultural boundaries. As a bi-racial woman, she did not want to choose between historically Caucasian or African-American sororities. Murchison-Blake felt that if she did choose one, she would be denying half of her heritage. Murchison-Blake recruited six other women who would become the national founders of Theta Nu Xi Multicultural Sorority, Inc. The founders were Geeta Nadia Kapur, Natalie Nicole Barker, Peggy Virginia Long, Melissa Jo Murchison-Blake, Brenda Imade Eribo, Katherine Ellen Stanley, and Janelle Kalia Poe. In the early days of its existence, the sorority met resistance from its campus of founding. The director of Greek Affairs at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill advised the national founders to consider joining an existing organization, expressing his concern that a new Greek organization based on the principle of multiculturalism, would not survive at UNC. Despite such resistance, the national founders' continued efforts set the stage for Theta Nu Xi's presence in the Greek, non-Greek, and surrounding communities. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill officially recognized Theta Nu Xi's ''Alpha chapter'' on April 11, 1997. To commemorate the result of their perseverance, the national founders–now known as the Founding Monarchs–acknowledged April 11, 1997, as the official founding date of the organization. With the collaborative efforts of the Founding Monarchs and the initiates of spring of 1998, the organization grew exponentially. The earliest members of Theta Nu Xi addressed an immediate need to develop an official process of expansion that would support new entities as well as serving the interests of the sorority. Under the visionary guidance of Anna Lamadrid, new chapters were founded in the spring of 1999 at

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and p ...

and one at UNC Greensboro. The three groups of women designated themselves ''Alpha, Beta,'' and ''Gamma'', respectively, and thus the national organization was born. The sorority was incorporated on April 29, 1999. With the participation of the ''Alpha chapter'', the ''Beta Kaleidoscope,'' and the ''Gamma Kaleidoscope'', the national organization was established at the first annual National Convention on August 21, 1999. The first out-of-state expansion effort resulted in the founding of the ''Epsilon chapter'' at

Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public university, public land grant colleges, land-grant research university with its main campus in Logan, Utah, United States. Founded in 1888 under the Morrill Land-Grant Acts as Utah's federal ...

in the spring of 2000. In the first national constitution, the earliest members of Theta Nu Xi laid the foundation for an active post-graduate status. On July 19, 2000, sixteen women petitioned the national board to be granted status as an ''Alumnae chapter''. The national board granted the Alumnae chapter status, allowing them to send representatives to the 2000 National Convention. Other alumnae chapters followed. The sorority's national office is located in

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

Symbols

The motto of Theta Nu Xi is "Sisters of Diversity, Together as ONE". Its tenets or pillars are scholarship, service, sisterhood, leadership, and multiculturalism. Theta Nu Xi's badge is a replica of its shield. The sorority's colors are black, lavender, and Carolina blue. Its symbol is the tiger swallowtail butterfly. Its flower is the sterling silver rose.

Chapters

Undergraduate chapters

In the following list of Theta Nu Xi undergraduate chapters, active chapters are indicated in bold and the inactive chapters are in ''italics''.Lurding, Carroll and Becque, Fran. (December 3, 2022)
Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities
'. Urbana: University of Illinois. Accessed January 7, 2023.

Graduate, alumnae, and professional (GAP) chapters

These are the non-collegiate or GAP chapters of Theta Nu Xi, with active chapters indicated in bold and inactive chapters in ''italics''.

References