Lillie Burke (died December 16, 1949) was an American woman who was one of the original founders of

Alpha Kappa Alpha Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. () is the first intercollegiate historically African American sorority. The sorority was founded on January 15, 1908, at the historically black Howard University in Washington, D.C., by a group of sixteen stud ...

Sorority in 1908, the first sorority founded by

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

women. Burke and her sister

Beulah Burke Beulah Elizabeth Burke (1885–1975), was, along with her sister, Lillie, one of the nine original founders of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority in 1908, the first sorority founded by African-American women. In her leadership as an educator and civic a ...

were two of the nine cofounders. In her leadership as an educator and organizer, Burke created important

social capital Social capital is "the networks of relationships among people who live and work in a particular society, enabling that society to function effectively". It involves the effective functioning of social groups through interpersonal relationships ...

. The chapter Burke helped establish 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, ...

, helped support African-American women in the community in their leadership of the next generations in society. Lillie Burke demonstrated in her work as an educator and active sorority member how African-American sororities supported women "to create spheres of influence, authority and power within institutions that traditionally have allowed African Americans and women little formal authority and real power."

Early life

Born c. mid-1880s in

Hertford, North Carolina Hertford is a town and the county seat of Perquimans County, North Carolina, United States. The current population of Hertford, North Carolina is 1,912 based on the 2020 census. The US Census estimates the 2021 population at 1,925. The last offici ...

, p. 7. Burke moved with her family to Washington, DC. There she and her sister Beulah attended the Howard Preparatory School. They graduated in 1904, ready to enter

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

later that year. It was a

historically black college Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of primarily serving the African-American community. Mo ...

Howard University

Lillie Burke was one of the sixteen founders (specifically one of the original group of nine founders) of

Sorority, Incorporated. She and her sister Beulah were instrumental in organizing the sorority. They also created its motto, as they were both accomplished Greek scholars. Lillie Burke graduated from

with a Bachelor of Arts in English. When she graduated from the top

in the nation, it was a time when only 1/3 of 1% of African Americans and 5% of whites of eligible age attended any college. Burke went on to earn a graduate degree from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

Career and community life

Burke had a long career as an educator in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

in academic programs in public high schools, primarily in Washington, DC, where she worked for most of her career. She was also head of the academic department at Downing Institute in Pennsylvania. In

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

she taught at the State Normal School at Fayetteville to prepare new generations of teachers, which was considered one of the most important careers in the South. Burke encouraged and taught generations of students through 30 years as an educator in the Washington, DC public school system. Although the schools were segregated, because the District of Columbia was then run directly by the Federal government, African-American teachers were paid at the same scale as white teachers. The system attracted highly qualified teachers, especially for Dunbar High School, the academic high school for African Americans.Thomas Sowell
"The Education of Minority Children"
Retrieved December 12, 2007 After Burke returned to Washington in 1912, she helped charter the Xi Omega alumnae chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha. She continued to contribute to the community through her activities with the sorority and her church. She died in

, in 1949.

References

External links

*
Honoring the Past: Alpha Kappa Alpha FoundersCentennial Celebration: Founders
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burke, Lillie Year of birth missing 1949 deaths People from Hertford, North Carolina 20th-century African-American academics 20th-century American academics Alpha Kappa Alpha founders American educators