University of Illinois, BGC

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated

Motto - "First of All, Servants of All, We Shall Transcend All"

Founded on December 4, 1906, on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, NewYork, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated is the first ever Intercollegiate Greek Letter Organization established by African Americans. The seven founders: Henry Arthur Callis, Charles Henry Chapman, Eugene Kinckle Jones, George Biddle Kelley, Nathaniel Allison Murray, Robery Harold Ogle, and Vertner Woodson Tandy (Collectively called the "Seven Jewels"), wanted to organize a fraternity that would provide a mechanism to give mutual support among African American students on a predominately White and segregated campus.  Today, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated has over 680 active chapters in the Americas, Africa, Europe, Asia, the West Indies, and the Virgin Islands. Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated is primarily a service organization and has provided leadership and service during the Great Depression, World Wars, Civil Rights Movements, and addresses social issues such as AIDS, urban housing, and other economic, cultural, and political issues affecting people of color. Today, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated continues this tradition of service, by having many national programs beneficial to  society, such as: "Go To HighSchool, Go To College," "A Voteless People Is A Hopeless People," "Project Alpha" (In Conjunction with the March of Dimes), etc.  Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Incorporated holds the position of being the first Intercollegiate Black Greek Letter Organization in the United States established for people of African descent, and a paragon for the remaining Black Greek Letter Organizations to follow.

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated
Motto - "By Culture, By Merit"

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated is the first Greek-lettered sorority established and incorporated by African American college women. Founded on January 15, 1908, by nine women on the campus of Howard University, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated serves all mankind through more than 200,000 women in over 950 chapters. The nine founders are: Ethel Hedgeman, Beulah Burke, Lillie Burke, Lucy Diggs Slowe, Marjorie Hill, Margaret Flagg Holmes, Marie Woolfolk Taylor, Anna Easter Brown, and Lavinia Norman. The women of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated can be found on every continent in the world. Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated has responded to the world’s increasing complexity and continues to empower communities through service initiatives and progressive programs which have a direct impact on the Black community. Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated gives back to the community through service projects primarily relating to education, family, health, and business., such as: "Advocates for Black Colleges," "Educational Advancement Foundation," and "Ivy Reading AKAdemy" (Which works in conjunction with No Child Left Behind). Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated still serves as a sorority where scholarship, community service, and humanity are all highly valued, as shown by this sorority's continued efforts at working towards the betterment of society. 

Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated
Motto - "Achievement in every field of human endeavor"

Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated is the second-oldest collegiate Greek-letter fraternity with a predominately African American membership. Founded on January 5, 1911, on the campus of Indiana University, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated has over 105,000 members with 700 undergraduate and alumni chapters in every state of the United States, and international chapters in the United Kingdom, Germany, Korea, Japan, the West Indies and South Africa. The ten men who founded Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated were dedicated to the principles of  achievement through a truly democratic fraternity. These ten founders are: Elder Watson Diggs, John Milton Lee, Byron K. Armstrong, Guy Levis Grant, Ezra D. Alexander, Henry T. Asher, Marcus P. Blakemore,  Paul W. Caine, Edward G. Irvin, and George W. Edmonds. Kappa Alpha Psi is a major contributor in the fields of political, social, cultural and scholastic achievement. The fraternity sponsors programs providing community service, social welfare and academic scholarship through the "Kappa Alpha Psi Foundation" and is a supporter of the United Negro College Fund and Habitat for Humanity. Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated continually works towards the goal of helping others and achieving excellence in all its endeavors. It moves steadily toward a tomorrow of promise, productivity and influence.

Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Incorporated
Motto - "Friendship is Essential to the Soul"

Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Incorporated is a national fraternity, and was the first black national fraternal organization to be founded at a historically black college. Omega Psi Phi was founded on November 17, 1911, at Howard University in Washington, D.C. by three undergraduate students and one faculty advisor. The founders were Howard University juniors Edgar Amos Love, Oscar James Cooper and Frank Charles Coleman, along with faculty advisor Ernest Everett Just. 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, and the uplifting of humanity. Omega Psi Phi has been a patron of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) since 1955, providing an annual gift of $50,000 to the its program. By continually doing national programs such as: College Endowment Funds, Health Initiatives, and a lifetime membership with the NAACP, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Incorporated continues to give back to society as a whole.

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated
Motto - "Intelligence is the Torch of Wisdom"

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated is a non-profit Greek letter organization consisting of college educated women who perform public service initiatives with emphasis on the African-American community. Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated was founded on January 13, 1913, on the campus of Howard University by twenty-two women. These women were: Osceola Macarthy Adams, Marguerite Young Alexander, Winona Cargile Alexander, Ethel Cuff Black, Bertha Pitts Campbell, Zephyr Chisom Carter, Edna Brown Coleman, Jesse McGuire Dent, Fredrica Chase Dodd, Myra Davis Hemmings, Olive C. Jones, Jimmie Bugg Middleton, Pauline Oberdorfer Minor, Vashti Turley Murphy, Naomi Sewell Richardson, Mamie Reddy Rose, Eliza Pearl Shippen, Florence Letcher Toms, Ethel Carr Waston, Wertie Blackwell Weaver, Madree Penn White, and Edith Motte Young. Today, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated is the largest African American Greek-lettered Sorority in the world, having a membership of over 250,000 predominantly African American, college-educated women. The first public service act the founders participated in was the Women's Suffrage March on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington D.C., March 1913. In March 2003, Delta Sigma Theta became a Non-Governmental Organization at the United Nations. Since the organization's founding in 1913, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated is established as an organization which provides assistance to the challenges of African Americans and all Americans. Over the years, many programs addressing education, health, international development, and strengthening of the African American family were established and evolved. As a part of the organization's mission, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated provides an extensive array of public service initiatives through the Five-Point Program Thrust of Economic Development, Educational Development, International Awareness and Involvement, Physical and Mental Health, and Political Awareness and Involvement.

Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Incorporated
Motto - "Culture For Service and Service For Humanity"

Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Incorporated is a predominately African American fraternity which was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C. on January 9, 1914, by three young African American male students. The founders: A. Langston Taylor, Leonard F. Morse, and Charles I. Brown, wanted to organize a Greek letter fraternity that would exemplify the ideals of brotherhood, scholarship, and service. The founders deeply wished to create an organization that viewed itself as "a part of" the general community rather than "apart from" the general community. On January 9, 1914, the permanent organization of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Incorporated was established on the campus of Howard University, in Washington D.C. Today, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Incorporated has blossomed into an international organization of leaders. The fraternity has experienced unprecedented growth and continues to be a leader among issues of social justice as well as proponent of the African American community. No longer a single entity, the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Incorporated has now established the “Phi Beta Sigma Educational Foundation,” the “Phi Beta Sigma Housing Foundation,” the “Phi Beta Sigma Federal Credit Union,” and a notable youth auxiliary program, "The Sigma Beta Club" and the “Phi Beta Sigma Charitable Outreach Foundation.” Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Incorporated has from its very beginning concerned itself with improving the general well-being of minority groups, and this tradition has continued ever since its founding.

Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated
Motto - "A Community-Conscious, Action-Oriented Organization"

Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated was founded January 16, 1920, on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. The founders created Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated because they felt that elitism and socializing had overshadowed what should be the real mission of sororities, which is to address and correct the problems of society, particularly in the African American community. The five founders, also known as the “Five Pearls” are:  Arizona Cleaver Stemons, Pearl Anna Neal, Viola Tyler Goings, Myrtle Tyler Faithful, and Fannie Pettie Watts. Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated was founded on the principles of Scholarship, Service, Sisterly Love, and Finer Womanhood. Since 1971, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated has enjoyed a partnership with the March of Dimes in an effort to encourage women to seek prenatal care within the first trimester of pregnancy, thereby increasing the prevention of birth defects and infant mortality. Nationwide, Zeta Phi Beta sponsors over 175 Stork's Nests. In 2005, the Stork's Nest program served over 28,000 women. Along with this, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated also heads other national programs called ZHOPE (Zetas Helping Other People Excel) and the ZOL (Zeta Organizational Leadership) Program. Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Incorporated has always continued the legacy of helping others.

Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated
Motto - "Greater Service, Greater Progress"

Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated was founded on November 12, 1922, by seven educators in Indianapolis, Indiana. These founders are: Mary Lou Allison Gardner Little, Nannie Mae Gahn Johnson, Vivian White Marbury, Bessie Mae Downey Rhoades Martin, Cubena McClure, Hattie Mae Annette Dulin Redford, and Dorothy Hanley Whiteside. The group became an incorporated national collegiate sorority on December 30, 1929, when a charter was granted to Alpha chapter at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana. Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated is non-profit whose aim is to enhance the quality of life within the community. Public service, leadership development, and education of youth are the hallmark of the organization's programs and activities. Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated addresses concerns that impact society educationally, civically, and economically. Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated has over 85,000 members with more than 500 undergraduate and alumnae chapters throughout the United States, Bermuda, the Bahamas, Africa, and Korea. Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated gives leadership, service, and resources toward removing barriers and inequalities so that all people of America may develop their potential and exercise full citizenship. Some programs include: The National Education Fund, Project Africare, and SPEAR (Sigma Public Education and Research Foundation). Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated, in its quest to expand its area of service, actively participates in the sponsoring of national and international programs designed for the improved welfare of all people.

Iota Phi Theta Fraternity Incorporated
Motto - "Building a Tradition, Not Resting Upon One!"

Iota Phi Theta Fraternity Incorporated is a nationally incorporated, predominantly African American social/service fraternity was founded at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. Iota Phi Theta Fraternity Incorporated presently consists of 30,000 members. There are currently around 200 undergraduate and alumni chapters, as well as colonies located in over 40 US states, the District of Columbia, the Bahamas, and South Korea. Iota Phi Theta Fraternity Incorporated was founded by twelve men in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement. Influenced by the times and by people and organizations such as the Black Panthers, SNCC, Malcolm X, and Stokely Carmichael. These founders are: Albert Hicks, Lonnie Spruill, Jr., Charles Briscoe, Frank Coakley, John Slade, Barron Willis, Webster Lewis, Charles Brown, Louis Hudnell, Charles Gregory, Elias Dorsey, Jr., and Michael Williams. Iota Phi Theta Fraternity Incorporated initially was a militant organization in a time where militancy was not a popular stance. Members participated in various protests and sit-ins throughout the city of Baltimore. Today, Iota Phi Theta Fraternity Incorporated continues with its community service efforts, by conducting national programs such as: The I.O.T.A. Youth Alliance, The IOTA Political Mobilization Campaign, and the Cultural Education Movement.

Phi Delta Psi Fraternity Incorporated
Motto - "All That We Put Into The Lives Of Others Comes Back Into Our Own"

Phi Delta Psi Fraternity Incorporated was founded on March 21, 1977 on the campus of Western Michigan University. Its incorporation in November, 1977 made it the seventh African American fraternity in the United States. Phi Delta Psi Fraternity Incorporated was founded on the principles of eternal honor, perseverance, leadership, achievement, and brotherhood. The founding fathers of the organization,  Kwameh A. Barnett, Derek G. Bell, Richard B. Bell, Charles W. Cameron, Gregory R. Brown, Gerald K. Dixon, Dennis D. Jones, Peter McClain, Michael V. Mosby, and Daulton R. Tansil, sought to create a fraternity that would meet the social, economic, and political challenges of African American males. Phi Delta Psi Fraternity Incorporated places importance on their founders' mantra of community service for the benefit their universities, families, communities, and the world.

Beta Phi Pi Fraternity Incorporated
Motto - "We Build Men, Men Build Futures"

Beta Phi Pi Fraternity Incorporated, which is a nationally recognized social and service organization, is one of the nation's newest Black Greek lettered organizations. On April 6, 1986 Beta Phi Pi Fraternity Incorporated was founded on the campus of Western Illinois University in Macomb, Illinois. Founders Erik A. Martin, Ralph Laplanche, and Chris Woulard wanted to be a part of a brotherhood that would uplift African Americans through scholarship and community service. Beta Phi Pi Fraternity Incorporated works diligently to serve its communities. In the next few years Beta Phi Pi Fraternity Incorporated plans to donate money to various organizations, such as: the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), the United Negro College Fund (UNCF), the March of Dimes, and others. Beta Phi Pi Fraternity Incorporated is also involved with the March for Breast Cancer and Meals on Wheels in the Chicago metropolitan area. Beta Phi Pi Fraternity Incorporated also feeds the elderly through Meals on Wheels and similar type programs. Members are committed to promoting brotherhood, self-improvement, African American pride and equal rights. Beta Phi Pi Fraternity Incorporated stresses the importance of serving and giving back to ones community and also to make a difference in the world.

Phi Rho Eta Fraternity Incorporated
Motto - "Purpose without coinciding action is pointless"

On August 22, 1994, Phi Rho Eta Fraternity Incorporated was founded at Southern Illinois University. Phi Rho Eta Fraternity Incorporated was created with the purpose of ameliorating the host of social diseases that have plagued our communities for far too long. Phi Rho Eta Fraternity Incorporated has worked  to establish itself as a brotherhood committed in purpose and action to transforming the plight of African Americans everywhere. The founders, Marvin Randolph and Lamont Taylor, sought to form a brotherhood that would work to set the standard of manhood, an organization comprised of charismatic men striving to model positive behavior. One of the cornerstones of Phi Rho Eta Fraternity Incorporated, the Mentor Teacher Brother mentorship program (MTB), directly relates to the interplay between fellowship and community development that Phi Rho Eta Fraternity Incorporated believes in. MTB is designed to provide young African American males with the tools necessary to succeed in life despite the odds. Phi Rho Eta Fraternity Incorporated continues to act as positive role models, while at the same time making a change for the better in communities nationwide.