KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Around 114 years ago in Howard University, a Black woman dreamed of a support network where other Black women could find support to navigate a complex, racist and unfair collegiate system. At the time, in 1908, discrimination laws were still commonplace.
Ethel Hedgemon dreamed of an organization where women could uplift others through their unique strengths and talents, so she formed Alpha Kappa Alpha. It was the first Greek-letter sorority meant to uplift young Black women.
On Saturday, the sorority celebrated their 114th Founder's Day, marking the nationwide growth of their organization and reflecting on how it works to help communities. They hosted a live stream on social media featuring some of the group's most prominent members.
AKA now has more than 320,000 collegiate and graduate members, with 1,044 chapters in 45 states across the U.S. There are also chapters in the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, Japan, Germany, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, Liberia and South Africa.
The sorority's credo is "to be supreme in service to all mankind," and has created thousands of initiatives across the world to serve their communities.
University of Tennessee's chapter of the sorority is known as 'Zeta Delta.' They were established 51 years ago.