Alpha Delta (), commonly known as AD, is a college
fraternity with 6 active chapters in the United States. Alpha Delta was initially formed by 14 men representing four colleges and universities at the
Henley Park Hotel
The Henley Park Hotel is a 96-room boutique style hotel located on 10th street and Massachusetts Avenue NW in Washington, DC. It features an upscale restaurant, The Tavern, and is noted for its unique architecture. The Henley Park Hotel is a member ...
in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
on August 4, 2007. The fraternity was founded by former
Alpha Phi Omega chapters that chose to maintain all-male membership after that organization became coeducational. Alpha Delta's cardinal principles are
leadership
Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets vi ...
,
brotherhood
Brotherhood or The Brotherhood may refer to:
Family, relationships, and organizations
* Fraternity (philosophy) or brotherhood, an ethical relationship between people, which is based on love and solidarity
* Fraternity or brotherhood, a mal ...
, and
service.
History
Prior to the formation of Alpha Delta, Alpha Phi Omega was founded at
Lafayette College
Lafayette College is a private liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 1832. The founders voted to name the college after General Laf ...
in
Easton, Pennsylvania
Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river that joins the Delaware R ...
in 1925 as a fraternal parallel to the
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded ...
. This organization would go one to become one of the largest all-male, Greek-lettered college organizations in the United States, expanding to over 500 colleges and universities nationwide.
In 1972 the United States passed the
Title IX
Title IX is the most commonly used name for the federal civil rights law in the United States that was enacted as part (Title IX) of the Education Amendments of 1972. It prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other educat ...
educational amendments, which in effect mandated that single-sex collegiate professional and community service organizations must become coeducational, although social fraternities and sororities, as well as sex-specific youth clubs such the Boy Scouts, were specifically exempt. At the time, Alpha Phi Omega was an all-male national service fraternity and it was not clear if the amendment applied to the organization. At the 1976 national convention of Alpha Phi Omega, the fraternity voted to become coeducational in compliance with these new university rules and regulations. Several chapters threatened to disassociate with the organization if they were forced to go coeducational, so a "
gentleman's agreement
A gentlemen's agreement, or gentleman's agreement, is an informal and legally non-binding agreement between two or more parties. It is typically oral, but it may be written or simply understood as part of an unspoken agreement by convention or th ...
" was made where the national organization would not require existing chapters to admit women as members, but all new chapters to the fraternity would.
Over the following 30 years, many legislative attempts were made internally within Alpha Phi Omega to clarify national membership standards over a chapter's right to remain single-sex. In July 2005, a Board of Directors Resolution was adopted clarifying the National Fraternity's membership policies by mandating coeducational membership. The resolution was upheld at the 2006 Alpha Phi Omega National Convention in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
. Per this resolution, the all-male chapters would be required to comply with the mandate or lose national organizational recognition.
A meeting was convened by the all-male chapters at a hotel conference room in Louisville, where the Sigma Xi Chapter at the
University of Maine
The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a public land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the flagship university of the University of Maine System. It is classifie ...
, the Zeta Theta chapter of
Drexel University, and the Pi Chi chapter of
Duquesne University
Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit ( or ; Duquesne University or Duquesne) is a private Catholic research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded by members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit
, image = Holy Gh ...
decided to disassociate themselves from the national organization and establish a new fraternity, Alpha Delta National Fraternity. This fraternity was later joined with the other all-male chapters, the Psi Delta Chapter at the
University of Maine at Machias
The University of Maine at Machias (UMaine Machias or UMM) is a public college in Machias, Maine. It is part of the University of Maine System. The institution was founded in 1909 as a normal school for educating teachers, and offers studies in ...
and the Nu Mu Chapter at the
University of Minnesota at Duluth.
The Alpha Delta National Fraternity was officially founded on August 14, 2007, at the
Henley Park Hotel
The Henley Park Hotel is a 96-room boutique style hotel located on 10th street and Massachusetts Avenue NW in Washington, DC. It features an upscale restaurant, The Tavern, and is noted for its unique architecture. The Henley Park Hotel is a member ...
in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, with fourteen men representing four of the all-male chapters present. The group adopted the Washington Convention Mission Statement, and Alpha Delta was tentatively agreed to be the acting name of the new organization. Later conventions on November 17, 2007, in
Boston, Massachusetts, and on January 25, 2008, in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, established the new national organization's ritual, constitution, bylaws, symbolism, colors, and coat of arms. Later, the coat of arms was redesigned by Jessica Lewis, a friend of the Zeta Theta Chapter at Drexel University, and subsequently redesigned a second time by Bart Brizee of the Sigma Xi Chapter at the University of Maine.
Purpose
The purpose of Alpha Delta shall be to assemble college men in a national fraternal order as envisioned by its spiritual founder Frank Reed Horton and the Boy Scouts of America. This fraternity is dedicated to developing leadership by providing service, forging the bonds of brotherhood regardless of race, creed or background, and by developing an understanding that service to mankind is not only an obligation, but a higher calling.
Chapters
*Sigma Xi –
University of Maine
The University of Maine (UMaine or UMO) is a public land-grant research university in Orono, Maine. It was established in 1865 as the land-grant college of Maine and is the flagship university of the University of Maine System. It is classifie ...
(Est. May 15, 1967)
[Alpha Phi Omega History Book (1925-1993) "Our Chapters" pp 185-205]
*Zeta Theta –
Drexel University (Est. May 16, 1948)
*Pi Chi –
Duquesne University
Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit ( or ; Duquesne University or Duquesne) is a private Catholic research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Founded by members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit
, image = Holy Gh ...
(Est. May 15, 1966)
*Psi Delta –
University of Maine at Machias
The University of Maine at Machias (UMaine Machias or UMM) is a public college in Machias, Maine. It is part of the University of Maine System. The institution was founded in 1909 as a normal school for educating teachers, and offers studies in ...
(Est. May 14, 1972)
*Nu Mu –
University of Minnesota at Duluth (Est. May 25, 1961)
*Alpha Beta –
Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) is a public research university in Indiana County, Pennsylvania. As of fall 2021, the university enrolled 7,044 undergraduates and 1,865 postgraduates, for a total enrollment of 9,009 students. The univ ...
(Inactive)
*Alpha Gamma -
Alcorn State University (Active)
References
{{Reflist, 30em
Fraternities and sororities in the United States
Student organizations established in 2007
2007 establishments in Washington, D.C.