 Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, the oldest Greek-letter organization established by African American college women, was founded on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. Led by Ethel Hedgeman Lyle, nine Howard University students came together to form Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority on January 15, 1908 in Miner Hall. The students were scholars, leaders, and standouts in their community and classes.
The original group was comprised of Anna Easter Brown, Beulah Burke, Lillie Burke, Marjorie Hill, Margaret Flagg Holmes, Ethel Hedgeman Lyle, Lavinia Norman, Lucy Slowe, and Marie Woolfolk Taylor.
With the exception of Ethel, the original group of women was comprised of college seniors. To continue the growth of the organization, seven members of the class of 1910 were invited to join without initiation. The sophomores were Norma Boyd, Ethel Jones Mowbray, Alice Murray, Sarah Meriweather Nutter, Joanna Berry Shields, Carrie Snowden and Harriet Terry.
The first step of establishing a national body in perpetuity was taken on January 29, 1913 when Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority was legally incorporated. The group of incorporators included Nellie Quander, Julia Brooks, Nellie Pratt Russell and Minnie Smith. |
Kappa Omega Chapter was chartered on March 1, 1923. Soror Marie Woolfolk Taylor was instrumental in organizing this first graduate chapter in the South Atlantic Region. The original Charter Members include: Floyd S. Brown, Eva Conner, Madeline Davis, Caroline Day, Ruth Prince, Alice Rucker, Louise Shivery, Adelaide Smith, Marie Woolfolk Taylor, Hattie Watson.