Alpha Kappa Alpha History

In a world in which materialism is pervasive, and technology and competition have decreased the need for collaboration and cooperation, it is critical to have an association that cuts across racial, international, physical, and social barriers to help individuals and communities develop and maintain constructive relationships with others. Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority is that vital organization.

Alpha Kappa Alpha is a sisterhood composed of women who have consciously chosen this affiliation as a means of self-fulfillment through volunteer service. Alpha Kappa Alpha cultivates and encourages high scholastic and ethical standards; promotes unity and friendship among college women; alleviates problems concerning girls and women; maintains a progressive interest in college life; and serves all mankind through a nucleus of more than 170,000 women in the United States, the Caribbean, Europe, and Africa.

Alpha Sigma Omega History

On October 6, 1930, Ms. Pearl Mitchell, Great Lakes Regional Director, met at the home of Ms. Elizabeth C. Mann in Columbus, Ohio to charter the Alpha Sigma Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.  Sorority members listed on the charter are: Cecilia Chancellor (Nu), Thelma A. Jackson (Theta), Elizabeth C. Mann (Theta), Octavia J. Martin (Theta), Vernon J. Reid (Theta), Clara Savoy (Nu), Eva Jane Smith (Theta), Lucretia Peters, Julianette Allen, and Eva W. Manuel.

Alpha Sigma Omega History Fun Facts

• Charter Member and first president of Alpha Sigma Omega Chapter , Octavia J. Martin was elected at the December 1930 Boule held in Cincinnati , OH as second international vice president.
• ASO has produced three Great Lakes Regional Directors - Juanita Davis Webster (1941); Emma Lilly Henderson (1988); and Rachel Ashburn Mallory (1998)
• ASO has been home to an Alpha Kappa Alpha Executive Director (Emma Lilly Henderson), an international parliamentarian (Rachel Ashburn Mallory), two international 2nd vice-presidents (Octavia J. Martin and Berna Rhodes-Ford), two undergraduate members-at-large (Olympia Coles and Shaylyn Cochran), and several international committee members.
• ASO has hosted seven Great Lakes Regional Conferences (1940, 1945, 1960, 1971, 1987, 2001, and 2011)
• ASO is home to two former international chairman Constitution and Bylaws Rachel Ashburn Mallory and Protocol Sharon M Bowman