KAPPA ALPHA THETA EPSILON PHI CHAPTER |
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Kappa Alpha Theta is an international organization composed of both college and allumnae chapters throughout the United States, Canada and England. The fraternity is an Indiana based not-for-profit organization. Kappa Alpha Theta's philanthropic arm, The Kappa Alpha Theta Foundation, supports the Fraternity's educational programs and Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA). The Foundation annually awards more than $300,000 in graduate and undergraduate scholarships to its members. |
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Kappa Alpha Theta operates towards the attainment of certain intellectual, social and moral aims. Theta's members aspire to attain the highest scholarship possible. Members work to exercise the widest possible influence for good. Finally the standard of love shall stand as the Fraternity's moral goal. |
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Yesterday, today, and tomorrow, Kappa Alpha Theta eists to nurture each member throughout her college and alumnae eperience and to offer a lifelong opportunity for social, intellectual and moral growth as she meets the higher and broader demands of mature life. |
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THETA'S COLORS, SYMBOL, FLOWER:
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Kappa Alpha Theta's International Headquarters is staffed by approximately 23 women and men who manage the administrative aspects of both the Fraternity and the Foundation. |
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The startling idea of a Greek letter fraternity for women was, in 1870, the inspiration of Bettie Locke, a young woman who was years ahead of her time. Her vision of quality higher education for women in coeducational institutions prompted her to investigate the possibility of an organization based on friendship and a shared high ideals, patterned after the men's fraternities at Asbury University in Greencastle, Indiana. As one of the first four women to be admitted to Asbury University in 1870 Bettie Locke was no stranger to pioneering in the educational domain. She soon realized that the fulfillment of an education reached beyond the attainment of academic prowess. Bettie thought that the friendship and support of those with the same scholastic goals and personal values could provide the necessary encouragement and incentive for other women to join and excell in coeducational colleges. From this idea stemmed the concept of an organization based on the fraternity idea that would provide the means of uniting young women in common goals, ideals and a lasting loyalty to each other. Credit for sparking the idea of this first greek letter fraternity for women can be rightly clamed by two men's fraternities. Bettie Locke's father, a professor at Asbury University, was also a member of Beta Theta Pi. He encouraged bettie to form her own fraternity when her search for an existing women's organization failed. Bettie was a good friend of members of the members of Phi Gamma Delta, the fraternity to which her brother held membership. When one of the Phi Gams asked Bettie to wear his badge, not as a symbol of any romantic attachment but as a token of friendship with the fraternity, she declined. Her explanation for this action was that she could not wear the pin without a knowledge of the secrets and purposes which it represented. Bettie instead accepted a silver basket engraved with the letters FGD. This very basket was later used by Bettie Locke Hamilton to hold the Founders Day messages received from Thetas all over the country each year and remains a treasured historic momento of Theta's foundation and founding mother. Alice Allen, another of the first group of women attend Asbury and Bettie's closest friend, was the first to know of Bettie's secret dreams to form a women's fraternity. They worked together to form a plan for their new fraternity, study ritual and organization. More members were needed for the nucleus of the new sorority. After careful consideration Bettie and Alice chose Hannah Fitch and Bettie Tipton. In a secret meeting the four women designed a badge similar in shape to the Phi Gamma Delta Pin, and it was immediately referred to as a "kite" by the college males. Following this they wrote a simple initiation ceremony. The first formal meeting of Kappa Alpha Theta took place on January 27th 1870. Bettie Locke initiated herself while standing in front of a mirror. After taking her vows she in turn initiated Alice Allen, Hannah Fitch and Bettie Tipton. Kappa Alpha Theta was, on that day, born and the first step of the big dream became a reality. Following the first initiation the members adopted a constitution, written by Bettie Locke and Alice Allen, accepted the name of the Fraternity and approved the design for the badge. The first officers chosen were Bettie Locke, president and Hannah Fitch, treasurer. The election of a secretary was put off until April 12th, 1870. On this day the first minutes of a Kappa Alpha Theta meeting were recorder. They were enterend in a small red leather notebook, along with the first roll of members and the constitution. The prized notebook was oftern the object of campus wits who delighted in waylaying the secretary and taking the Thetas' little red book. It was always returned and became the most valued record of the Fraternity. Early records and stories handed down by the first members describe the chapter meetings as the bright spots off college life. Singing together was then, as it is today, a part of chapter fellowship. It was not unusual for the busines meetings to be conducted with all members sitting in a circle on the floor which was Alpha Chapter's wish "to be on a level with one another." The society was kept a secret until it could be properly launched by wearing the new badges. The arrival of the badges on March 14th marked Kappa Alpha Theta's dramatic entry into the fraternity world when the four members first wore them on campus. The size of the badge, one inch by three-quarters of an inch, made them conspicuous enough to be notoced by all. Besides a sense of the dramatic, early members had a flair for style... some of them wore their pins in their hair. They were also a bit coy about the new fraternity and pretended at first that it was launched by some national society. A Greek-letter organization for women at Asbury was just the first step. From the beginning the larger dream was a national organization, which would attrackt the finest young women among those adventuresome avant guard seeking an education. Determined to proceed immediately with a plan for a national fraternity, Bettie Locke installed Beta Chapter at Indiana University in May, 1870. Three other chapters soon followed, but they were short-lived due to faculty opposition and a decrease in women students. At the first convention in Bloomington, Indiana, in 1872, Kappa Alpha Theta began to form its earliest policy on etension. They decided then and there that "Chapters in female colleges do not prosper," and the Grand Chapter Alpha would make preliminary investigations to proceed with extension. By this time a friendly rivalry in expanding to new campuses had developed with Kappa Kappa Gamma, established at Monmouth College in Monmouth, Illinois, in October, 1870. The presence of a rival group on a campus also led to a new system of "spiking," or rushing. This early competitiveness prompted a rather hasty adoption of Fraternity colors. A coed being rushed by bothe Kappa and Theta commented on the Kappa colors and asked "What are yours?" Although no colors had been officially adopted, the Theta instictively looked at her badge and said, "BLACK and GOLD." The chapter then approved the choice. Kappa Alpha Theta's proud history of growth and accomplishment has been preserved for the members of this Fraternity in four volumes
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hbachman@uchicago.edu