Minnie B. Smith was an incorporator 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, the first sorority founded by African-American women. Although Smith died young in the influenza epidemic in 1919, the legacy she created with Alpha Kappa Alpha has continued to generate

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 ...

for nearly 100 years. Smith graduated from

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 ...

in 1912. She taught at the Mott School while attending college.

Howard University and incorporation

When Smith graduated from Howard University, it was the top historically black college 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. When hearing plans of twenty-two members desiring to cede from Alpha Kappa Alpha in order to form a new sorority, Nellie Quander contacted graduate members, including Smith, in order to stop the proposals. p. 66. As a result, Smith, Quander,

Norma Boyd Norma Elizabeth Boyd (August 9, 1888 – March 14, 1985) was one of sixteen founders of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the first sorority founded by African-American women students, at Howard University. She was also one of the incorporators of the organizat ...

Julia Evangeline Brooks Julia Evangeline Brooks (June, 1882 – November 24, 1948) was an incorporator of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, the first sorority founded by African-American women. The sorority has continued to generate social capital for near ...

, Nellie Pratt Russell and Ethel Jones Mowbray incorporated Alpha Kappa Alpha on January 29, 1913. The dissenters formed another sorority entitled,

Delta Sigma Theta Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. () is a historically African American sorority. The organization was founded by college-educated women dedicated to public service with an emphasis on programs that assist the African American community. Delta ...

Sorority. Smith served as the secretary of the incorporating committee and as Supreme Basileus of Alpha Kappa Alpha, while Quander was away studying mentally

handicapped Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physical, se ...

children in

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

.McNealey 2006, op. cit., p. 67. In 1919, Smith contracted the

Spanish influenza The 1918–1920 influenza pandemic, commonly known by the misnomer Spanish flu or as the Great Influenza epidemic, was an exceptionally deadly global influenza pandemic caused by the H1N1 influenza A virus. The earliest documented case was ...

, and died shortly after contracting the disease.

References

1919 deaths Alpha Kappa Alpha founders American educators Deaths from Spanish flu African-American educators African-American women educators Year of birth missing {{US-activist-stub