Gamma Alpha Omega () is a Latina-founded

Greek letter The Greek alphabet has been used to write the Greek language since the late 9th or early 8th century BCE. It is derived from the earlier Phoenician alphabet, and was the earliest known alphabetic script to have distinct letters for vowels as ...

intercollegiate

sorority Fraternities and sororities are social organizations at colleges and universities in North America. Generally, membership in a fraternity or sorority is obtained as an undergraduate student, but continues thereafter for life. Some accept gradua ...

, established in 1993 on the campus of Arizona State University in

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. The sorority has 28 collegiate chapters and 13 alumnae chapters.

History

Gamma Alpha Omega was founded on by eight Latina women.

Founders

From the beginning the organization was "dedicated to promoting the achievement and quest of

higher education Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after comple ...

amongst all women", thus while established by Latinas it was open from the start to women of all backgrounds. Its mission is noted with four goals: * increase the number of women with college educations and advanced degrees. * provide mentors for youth, women and underrepresented communities, * support individual leaders in each member * provide lifelong support for sisters, rooted in the pillars of Honesty, Integrity, Leadership, Scholarship and Unity.From the national website'
Quick Facts
page, accessed 4 Jul 2021.

Milestones

In 1997, Gamma Alpha Omega expanded beyond Arizona with the founding of ''Gamma chapter'' at the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattl ...

on January 24 of that year. In 2000, the sorority became a founding member of the

National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations The National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations (NALFO) is an umbrella council for 16 Latino Greek Letter Organizations (GLOs) established in 1998. The purpose of NALFO is to promote and foster positive interfraternal relations, commu ...

(NALFO) when it emerged as a national association of Latino fraternal groups. April 2001, marked a milestone for Gamma Alpha Omega, when the organization was officially recognized as an incorporated entity in the state of Arizona. In 2012, Gamma Alpha Omega chartered the first double letter chapter for the Sorority at the University of New Mexico. In 2016, Gamma Alpha Omega withdrew from NALFO alongside several other founding fraternity and sorority members of the council. This was due to a variety of reasons.

Symbols and traditions

At its founding the sorority chose the colors Forest Green, Navy Blue and White as identifiers, along with a mascot of a "White Bengal Tiger with Blue Eyes". Further symbolism has been added over the years, including a flower, the "White Thornless Rose", and three jewels, the Green Emerald, Blue Sapphire and White Diamond. The official colors were refined with adoption of the sorority's branding guide.From the national website'
Resources
page, accessed 4 Jul 2021. The sorority notes five "pillars" important to its culture: honesty, integrity, leadership, scholarship and unity. The sorority recognizes high-functioning chapters as "Diamond Standard" chapters.From the national website'
Programming
page, accessed 4 Jul 2021. The sorority publishes a digital magazine twice annually called ''The ROSE Vine''.

Governance

Governance of the sorority is vested in a National Executive Board which manages the affairs of the organization on a day-to-day basis. The sorority meets in a national convention every two years during odd-numbered years. Regional conferences are held in the off-years between national conventions.

National leadership

As of July 1, 2021, national officers include:From the national website'
Leadership
page, accessed 4 Jul 2021. * National President * Vice President * VP of Expansion * VP of Communications * VP of Collegiate Affairs * VP of Programming * VP of Standards * VP of Finance * VP of Alumnae Affairs In addition, the National Administration also contains regional and national directors that assist with the different regions, areas, and departments with the National Office & Headquarters of Gamma Alpha Omega.

Chapters

Active chapters noted in bold, inactive chapters noted in ''italics''. Chapter information from the national website or the referenced ''Baird's Manual'' online archive.

References

{{National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations 1993 establishments in Arizona National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations Hispanic and Latino American organizations Arizona State University Hispanic and Latino American culture in Arizona Latino fraternities and sororities Fraternities and sororities in the United States Student organizations established in 1993