Anna Boyd Ellington

Delta Gamma (), commonly known as DG, is a women's fraternity in the United States and Canada with over 250,000 initiated members. It has 150 collegiate chapters and more than 200 alumnae groups. The organization's executive office is in Columbus, Ohio. The main archive URL i
The Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage
Delta Gamma is one of 26 national fraternities under the umbrella organization of the National Panhellenic Conference.

History

Delta Gamma was founded as a fraternity in December 1873 at the Lewis School for Girls in Oxford, Mississippi near the University of Mississippi. It was called a fraternity because the term sorority was not yet in use. The group's founders were Mary Comfort Leonard, Eva Webb Dodd, and Anna Boyd Ellington.

Initially, Delta Gamma's early growth was to women's colleges in the southern United States. Within a few years, Delta Gamma expanded into the northern United States and into the East with the help of George Banta, a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity and Delta Gamma's only male initiate. Banta played an integral part in the expansion of Delta Gamma to well-recognized northern colleges.

In 1882, Banta married Lillian Vawter, a Delta Gamma at Franklin College. In his later years, Banta helped rewrite the Delta Gamma ritual. He frequently visited Delta Gamma conventions, often participating as a guest speaker. He gave his last speech in 1934, a year before his death. Because of Banta, Delta Gamma retains close historical ties with Phi Delta Theta.

Delta Gamma was one of seven charter members of the National Panhellenic Conference when the first inter-sorority meeting was held in Boston, Massachusetts in 1891. Delta Gamma and the six other charter members formally joined the National Panhellenic Conference in 1902.

As of 2022, Delta Gamma has 150 collegiate chapters in the United States and Canada. It has more than 200 alumnae groups in the United States, Canada, and England.

In 2013, Delta Gamma founded the #IAmASororityWoman campaign for members of any sorority to start conversations about what sorority women truly value to combat common stereotypes.

Symbols

Although Delta Gamma has no official jewel, the fraternity recognizes the anchor as its official symbol and bronze, pink, and blue as its official colors. The official flower is the cream-colored rose, registered as the Delta Gamma Cream Rose with the American Rose Society. This is the only sorority flower registered as such. The Hannah Doll is their mascot.

The badge of Delta Gamma is a golden anchor and may be worn only by initiated members. Before the adoption of the golden anchor, the symbol of Delta Gamma was simply an "H" for the word "Hope". In 1877, the Hope badge was changed to the traditional symbol of hope, the anchor. Today's badge has a small cable wrapping around the top of the anchor, with the Greek letters Tau Delta Eta (ΤΔΗ) on the crosspiece. Delta Gamma's motto is "Do Good."

Programs

Philanthropy

The Delta Gamma Foundation was formed in 1951. It has three main philanthropic focuses: service for sight, grants to the fraternity for educational and leadership purposes, and grants to individual members. Members and local chapters contribute to its funds. Delta Gamma gives more than 150,000 volunteer hours to service for sight each year.

The fraternity is one of the first recipients of the Helen Keller Philanthropic Service Award, given by the American Foundation for the Blind for assistance to those who are visually impaired and for sight conservation. It was also the first recipient of the Virginia Boyce Award presented by Prevent Blindness America.Anchor Splash and Anchor Games are the Delta Gamma's fundraising events hosted on college campuses across North America. The proceeds raised at these events support Delta Gamma's philanthropies, such as service for sight. Anchor Splash is a synchronized swimming event. The event has different organizations on campus create a synchronized swimming dance. The dance is performed at Anchor Splash for an audience. Each chapter decides how to implement these events on its campus; for example, some chapters may host flag football tournaments or volleyball tournaments as their fundraiser.

Publications

The official Delta Gamma magazine is the ''Anchora'' ("aNGkərə" not "ankôrə"), which has been published quarterly continuously since 1884. Delta Gamma members can submit photos and articles to be included ''The'' ''Anchora''.

Membership and chapters

Potential members must attend a college where there is a Delta Gamma chapter. Members join through either formal recruitment or continuous open bidding (COB). A COB can occur when a potential new member wants to join outside of recruitment. Joining outside of recruitment can happen any time of the year.

There are 150 collegiate chapters across America and Canada. The Zeta Phi chapter at Harvard University announced in 2018 that it was closing due to Harvard's policy against gender-segregated organizations.

Notable members

Arts and entertainment

*Mona Kosar Abdi – journalist with WSET ABC 13, Al Jazeera Media Network, and KGTV Channel 10
*Jill Arrington – former sports reporter for CBS
*Diem Brown – cast member of MTV's '' The Challenge''
*Sabrina Bryan – co-star of Disney Channel's original film series and musical group The Cheetah Girls, contestant on '' Dancing with the Stars''
*Nadine Jolie Courtney – beauty journalist, author, cast member of Bravo television show Newlyweds: The First Year
* Cheryl Crawford – Broadway producer; founder of Group Theatre and Actors Studio
* Hagar Chemali – political satirist, writer, producer, television personality, and political commentator
*Mary Frann – actress in ''Newhart''
*Samantha Harris – former host of '' Dancing with the Stars,'' host of various shows on E!, model, and actress.
*Patricia Heaton – actress in ''Everybody Loves Raymond''
* E.D. Tarbox Hill – ''Fox and Friends'' host
*Christine Lahti – actress
*Julia Louis-Dreyfus – Emmy Award-winning actress
*Joan Lunden – former host of '' Good Morning America''
*Donna Mills – actress in '' Knots Landing''
* Terry Murphy – Emmy Award-winning journalist of ''Hard Copy''
* Cristina Perez – lawyer, television judge, radio host, and author
* Kyra Phillips – CNN anchor, four-time Emmy Award winner
*Alice Ripley – Broadway actress; Tony Award winner, ''Next to Normal''
*Eva Marie Saint – actress
* Susan Spencer – staff correspondent on '' 48 Hours''
*Julia Sweeney – actress and comedian from ''Saturday Night Live''
* Anita Vogel – ''Fox News'' correspondent
*Lizz Winstead – creator of ''The Daily Show''

Authors and publishing

* Phyllis Battelle – nationally syndicated columnist
* Elizabeth M. Boyer – author, lawyer, and founder of Women's Equity Action League
* Christine Clifford – author and motivational speaker
* Brenda Wang Clough – science fiction and fantasy author
* Heloise Cruse – advice columnist
* Carolyn Englefield – former senior decorating editor for ''House Beautiful'', freelance producer for '' House & Garden'', ''Elle Decor'', and ''Veranda''
* Ellen Bromfield Geld – author
* Jackie Martin – first female photo and art editor of the ''Washington Herald'', war correspondent, and director of photo operations of The Marshall Plan
*Lauren Purcell – deputy editor of ''Self'' magazine, editor-in-chief of ''Every Day With Rachael Ray''
* Heather Buchanan Spohr – writer, author, philanthropist
*Terry Tempest Williams – author, conservationist, activist

Business

* Merry Hull – redesigned the basic construction of the glove in 1939, creating the modern industry standard
*Sharen Jester Turney – president and CEO of Victoria's Secret

Education

* Edith Abbott – first female dean of a graduate school at an American university, the University of Chicago's School of Social Service Administration
* Judy L. Bonner – first woman president of the University of Alabama
* Ada Louise Comstock – first full-time president of Radcliffe College

Government and judicial

* Grace Abbott – highest ranking woman in the U.S. government as the head of the United States Children's Bureau (1921–1934); first woman to be nominated for a presidential cabinet position, U.S. Secretary of Labor; first United States representative to the League of Nations
*Carol Bellamy – president and CEO of World Learning, executive director of UNICEF (1995–2005), former director of the U.S. Peace Corps
*Rita Colwell – first female to be named Director of the National Science Foundation and chairman of Canon US Life Sciences, Inc.
* Deborah L. Cook – federal judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
* Nancy-Ann DeParle – deputy chief of staff for policy in the Obama administration, director of the White House Office of Health Reform (2009–2011).
* Susan Shannon Engeleiter – first woman to head the Small Business Administration
*Fern Holland – attorney, worked for United States Agency for International Development, Defense of Freedom Medal recipient
*Sarah Tilghman Hughes – first female federal judge

Politicians

* Kelly Ayotte – United States Senator from New Hampshire (2011–2017)
* Jo Ann Emerson – U.S. Congresswoman from Missouri (1996–2013)
* Melissa Hart – U.S. Congresswoman from Pennsylvania (2001–2007)
* Mary Landrieu – Senator from Louisiana (1997–2015)
* Ruth Bryan Owen – U.S. Ambassador to Denmark (1933–1936) and the first woman elected to Congress from Florida

Sports

* Judy Bell – first female president of United States Golf Association (1996–1998), Lifetime Achievement Inductee in the World Golf Hall of Fame, 2001
*Carin Cone – champion swimmer
* Emilee Klein – professional golfer
*Bonnie Lauer – professional golfer; 1977 Rookie of the Year
*Susan Nattrass – first woman shooter in the 1976 Summer Olympics
* Jill Savery – member of the gold medal U.S. synchronized swimming team at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta
*Anne White – nationally ranked tennis player in the late 1980s
*Cynthia “Cynt” Marshall - Dallas Mavericks CEO

See also

*List of social fraternities and sororities

Notes

References

{{Fraternities and Sororities , collapsed

1873 establishments in Ohio
National Panhellenic Conference
Student organizations established in 1873
Student societies in the United States