About

National History

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated is a, nonprofit organization whose purpose is to provide assistance and support through established programs in local communities throughout the world. Founded on January 13, 1913 by twenty-two collegiate women at Howard University, the Sorority is currently a sisterhood of more than 200,000 predominately Black college educated women. This includes 1,000 collegiate and alumnae chapters located in the United States, Canada, England, Japan (Tokyo and Okinawa), Germany, the Virgin Islands, Bermuda, the Bahamas, and the Republic of Korea.

The major programs of the sorority are based upon the organization’s Five-Point Programmatic Thrust:

Economic Development
Educational Development
International Awareness and Involvement
Physical and Mental Health
Political Awareness and Involvement

For more information, Visit Delta Sigma Theta’s national website at www.deltasigmatheta.org

Founders

(First Row): Winona Cargile Alexander, Madree Penn White, Wertie Blackwell Weaver, Vashti Turley Murphy, Ethel Cuff Black, Frederica Chase Dodd;

(Second Row): Osceola Macarthy Adams, Pauline Oberdorfer Minor, Edna Brown Coleman, Edith Mott Young, Marguerite Young Alexander, Naomi Sewell Richardson, Eliza P. Shippen;

(Third Row): Zephyr Chisom Carter, Myra Davis Hemmings, Mamie Reddy Rose, Bertha Pitts Campbell, Florence Letcher Toms, Olive Jones, Jessie McGuire Dent, Jimmie Bugg Middleton, Ethel Carr Watson.

We believe all women can embrace who they are,
can define their future, and can change the world.

Our Mission

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated is an organization of college educated women committed to the constructive development of its members and to public service with a primary focus on the Black community.

Our Mission

Purpose

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated. is a private, membership organization whose purpose is to provide assistance and support through established programs in local communities throughout the world. Since its founding more than 200,000 women have joined the organization. The organization is a sisterhood of predominantly Black, college educated women. The sorority currently has 1,000 collegiate and alumnae chapters located in the United States, Japan (Tokyo and Okinawa), Germany, the Virgin Islands, Bermuda, the Bahamas, Jamaica and the Republic of Korea.

The major programs of the sorority are based upon the organization's Five-Point Programmatic Thrust. More than ten thousand members typically attend Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated's biennial national conventions, and each of the seven regional conferences (held during years when there is no national convention) typically hosts thousands of members. At its recent 51st National convention held in the District of Columbia, more than 38,000 members registered and attended.

Chapter History

The concept to establish an additional chapter in the East Bay Area was conceived by three Delta Sorors several years prior to the actual chartering of the chapter. These three Sorors were: Lee Etter Butler-Mouton, Gloria Keith-Dugan and Bernice Spearman-Thompkins. These pioneering Sorors began making preparations using the data from their research to establish a viable and productive organization in the Oakland East Bay Community. On June 30, 1979, Mrs. Addie Jean Haynes, Director of the Farwest Region, with all power invested by the National Executive Board, chartered the Oakland East Bay Alumnae Chapter.

Charter Members: Grace M. Adams, Cheryl Coleman, Iris Cox, Catherlene T. Dudley, Gloria Keith-Dugan, Rosie M. Greer, Victoria Hatchett, Rhonda Hill, Carrie L. Jefferson, Edith Martin, Isabel Medford, Lee Etter Butler-Mouton, Helen Neil, Ollie L. Owens, Jessie Lacy-Strange, Dorothy Washington-Strickland, Bernice Spearman-Thompkins, Dorothy Townsend, Loni R. Williams, and La Rose Woods.