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In 1908, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority became America’s first Greek-letter organization established by Black college women. Her roots date back to Howard University in Washington, D.C., where the idea for formation was conceived by Ethel Hedgemon Lyle of St. Louis, Missouri.
After her incorporation as a perpetual body in 1913, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® gradually branched out and became the channel through which selected college-trained women improved the socioeconomic conditions in their city, state, nation, and the world.
On May 11, 1949, Epsilon Kappa Omega Chapter was given a charter. The 129th graduate chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. consisted of eight charter members. Pauline Coggs, Rena Curry, Aldon Freeman, Clarice Harris, Norma Humphrey, Cassandra Kelley, Mabel Raimey and Edwina Thomas. The impressive candlelight ceremony was conducted by Regional Director, Lucile Wilkins, at the home of Clarice Harris. The following officers were selected for 1949-1950. Pauline Coggs, president; Cassandra Kelley, vice president; Clarice Harris, secretary; Aldon Freeman, correspondence secretary and Ivy Leaf reporter, and Edwina Thomas, treasurer. After the service there was a social hour.
Formal opening of national headquarters for the 216 chapters of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority was held Sunday, October 9, 1949, in Chicago at 6308 Cottage Grove Avenue, with Beta and Theta Omega Chapters serving as hostesses to members of other fraternal organizations who expressed best wishes.
Pauline Redmond Coggs*
Phyllis Curry
Alden Freeman
Clarice Harris
Norman Humphrey
Cassandra Kelley
Mabel Raimey
Edwina Thomas
Pauline Redmond Coggs, a noted community activist and retired professor of Social Work at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, made her life-transition on July 17, 2005 becoming an Ivy Beyond the Wall. Until then, she was the last living charter member. A prestigious award has been named in her honor and in 1999, the Pauline Redmond Coggs Foundation was formed.
Our 24th chapter president, Dorothy Buckhanan Wilson, served at the highest level of our sisterhood as the 2014-2018 International President of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated®.
1st – Pauline Redmond Coggs (1949)
2nd – Edwina Thomas (1950)
3rd – Clarice Green (1952)
4th – Doreatha Carter (1953)
5th – Anna Mae Fisher (1955)
6th – Jodora Middleton (1956)
7th – Mildred Pollard (1958)
8th – Lorraine Crumble Carter (1959)
9th – Julianna B. Rhoten (1962)
10th – Delores Hardiman (1964)
11th – Frances Brock Starms (1965)
12th – Frances Jefferson (1968)
13th – Mary K. Ball (1969)
14th – Melbia Rhodes (1971)
15th – Kathleen Coleman (1973)
16th – Geraldine Goens (1975)
17th – Elvira Dicks (1977)
18th – Mildred Parrish (1979)
19th – Jacqulyn Shropshire (1981)
20th – Irajean Haynes (1983)
21st – Ernestine Hansbrough (1985)
22nd – Ethel Walker (1987)
23rd – Annie J. Carlisle (1989)
24th – Dorothy Buckhanan Wilson* (1991)
25th – Deidra Y. A. Edwards (1993)
26th – Carol Brown Turner (1995)
27th – Jenelle Elder-Green (1997)
28th – Joyce King-Mclver (1999)
29th – Margaret A. Rogers (2001)
30th – Joyce A. Peoples (2003)
31st – Catherine E. Miles (2005)
32nd – Michelle Crockett (2007)
33rd – Teresa Brown (2009)
34th – Sandra Hubbard (2011)
35th – Khyana Pumphrey (2013)
36th – Bridget J. Borum (2015)
37th – Dara Atandare (2017)
38th – Doris Cahn (2019)
39th – Debra Brown Wallace (2021)
By uniting individual efforts, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority has built a strong, cohesive organization that positively impacts the lives of families and communities. The sorority’s success is based on the depth of commitment, vision and confidence of its members.
Alpha Kappa Alpha seeks women who will promote, uphold, and extend its policies and programs. In return, the sorority is a conduit through which individuals can grow and develop, personally and professionally, while simultaneously providing “Service to All Mankind.”
Membership in Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority is generally classified as undergraduate or graduate. Graduate membership is by invitation only. For more information, college graduates should visit the international website by clicking here.
Alpha Kappa Alpha members, if you are interested in visiting, transferring or reactivating, please contact us today. We are eager to welcome and help you through the reactivation or transfer process. You can also find reactivation and transfer verification forms on the international website’s membership page.
The Pauline Redmond Coggs Foundation was established in 1999 by the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Epsilon Kappa Omega Chapter for charitable, educational and community services. It is a vehicle for accepting, distributing and investing funds for student scholarships and awards, community programs, and charitable donations to assist mankind in general.
Visit the Foundation to learn more.