Pi Delta Kappa () was a regional collegiate

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 ...

operating in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

from 1907 to 1913. The sorority planned to become a national organization, but ultimately was absorbed by

Chi Omega Chi Omega (, also known as ChiO) is a women's fraternity and a member of the National Panhellenic Conference, the umbrella organization of 26 women's fraternities. Chi Omega has 181 active collegiate chapters and approximately 240 alumnae chapte ...

History

The ''Alpha chapter'' was created with eleven members at

Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...

in 1907. ''Beta chapter'', from Gamma Alpha Chi at

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...

, followed in 1909. That same year, at the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,00 ...

, Professor Howell Lindley (

Phi Delta Theta Phi Delta Theta (), commonly known as Phi Delt, is an international secret and social fraternity founded at Miami University in 1848 and headquartered in Oxford, Ohio. Phi Delta Theta, along with Beta Theta Pi and Sigma Chi form the Miami Triad ...

) and an unnamed female professor chartered the ''Gamma chapter''. Lindley assisted his chapter with the petition to Chi Omega. Expanding into multiple colleges in Ohio, Pi Delta Kappa was noticed by national fraternities

Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon (), commonly known as SAE, is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama on March 9, 1856. Of all existing national social fraternities today, Sigma Alpha Epsilon is t ...

and Delta Delta Delta, to be mentioned in their respective publications. Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities (1912 edition) profiled Pi Delta Kappa, specifying that its the three chapters had initiated a combined total of 75 members. Due to the trailing nature of data collection for this reference, the sorority may have a slightly larger final number of initiates, prior to its absorption by Chi Omega the following year. In this edition of Baird's, Pi Delta Kappa was grouped with "Women's General Fraternities," which included the contemporary members of the

National Panhellenic Conference The National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) is an umbrella organization for 26 (inter)national women's Fraternities and sororities, sororities throughout the United States and Canada. Each member group is autonomous as a social, Greek alphabet#Use ...

. The sorority's eventual absorption by Chi Omega was profiled in Banta's Greek Exchange (1913), as well as Chi Omega's historical record.

Insignia

According to Baird's Manual, 1912 edition: The official magazine was ''The Hour Glass''. The official colors were Old gold and Seal brown, and the official badge was an owl wearing a mortarboard with the sorority's letters.Noted in th
Ohio University ''Athena yearbook'' of 1910, p.141
accessed 24 Nov 2021.

Chapters

Chapters of Pi Delta Kappa at the time of the merger were as follows. All were active, and each was accepted as a new chapter for Chi Omega:

References

{{reflist * Ferguson, Christelle. ''A History of Chi Omega''. Chi Omega, 1928. * Martin, Ida Shaw. ''The Sorority Handbook''. George Banta Publishing Co., 1919. * Anson, Jack L., Robert F. Marchesani, and

William Raimond Baird William Raimond Baird (1848–1917) was the namesake of Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities and publisher of its early editions. Biography He was born in 1848 and in 1878 he graduated from Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, Ne ...

. ''Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities''. 7th. ed.. New York: College Fraternity Pub., 1912. * Anson, Jack L., Robert F. Marchesani, and

. ''Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities''. 8th. ed. New York: Baird's Manual Foundation, 1915. * G. Banta. ''Banta's Greek Exchange'', v. 2 (1912–1913). George Banta, 1913. * The Record of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, vol. 32, 1912. * The Triangle of Sigma Sigma Sigma, vol. 12–13, 1912–1913. * The Trident of Delta Delta Delta, vol. 23, 1913–1914.

External links

Chi Omega Official Website
Defunct fraternities and sororities 1907 establishments in Ohio Student organizations established in 1907