Latest news with #Greek-letter
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
New Florida A&M president Marva Johnson is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha
The post New Florida A&M president Marva Johnson is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha appeared first on ClutchPoints. Florida A&M University's controversial new president, Marva Johnson, is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Many people find that news surprising due to her conservative views. In May, Johnson was selected as the 13th president of Florida A&M last month despite major pushback from alumni, students, and supporters. On May 16, the Board of Trustees met, and Johnson was chosen by a vote of 8 to 4. She is just the second woman to be appointed as president of Florida A&M in the university's history. After Elmira Mangum, who was president from 2014 to 2016. Following weeks of intense discussion, campus visits, and growing resistance from community residents, students, and alumni who questioned Johnson's credentials and connections to Republican political figures, the choice was made. Johnson had previously worked for Florida Governors Rick Scott and Ron DeSantis as a political appointee. She currently works at Charter Communications as Vice President of State Government, according to the Tallahassee Democrat. Due to Johnson's lack of experience and political ties, especially to Ron DeSantis, supporters of the university and other members of the HBCU community are against her appointment. Due to the Florida Board of Governors, DeSantis and his appointees had significant influence over Johnson becoming president. The State University System of Florida is governed by the Board of Governors, which is the highest authority. For campus-level decisions, each institution has its own Board of Trustees, but for system-wide policy, the Board of Governors has the last word. During the search for a new president, four trustees supported Donald Palm, one of the four contenders for the 13th presidency. At the university, he currently serves as the chief operating officer and executive vice president. Palm was also endorsed by the Florida A&M National Alumni Association. 'We are proud to formally endorse Dr. Donald Palm as our preferred candidate for the 13th President of Florida A&M University,' FAMU NAA President Curtis Johnson said in a May 10 letter to the association's members obtained by the Tallahassee Democrat. He added in the letter, 'Dr. Palm's deep connection to FAMU as the current chief operating officer, former faculty member, and long-standing champion of our mission positions him uniquely to continue our trajectory of excellence.' Johnson's appointment comes after former president Dr. Larry Robinson resigned following the $237 million donation scandal with Gregory Gerami. Dr. Timothy Beard was appointed interim president and served a one-year term until a permanent president was found. Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated was founded on January 15, 1908, on the campus of Howard University by nine collegiate women. Alpha Kappa Alpha is the oldest established Greek-letter organization for Black women. The sorority has over 355,000 members, including Vanessa Bell Calloway, Phylicia Rashad, Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, Patti LaBelle, and Coretta Scott King.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Alpha Kappa Alpha makes huge global expansion
The post Alpha Kappa Alpha makes huge global expansion appeared first on ClutchPoints. Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, chartered a new chapter in London, United Kingdom, broadening its worldwide reach. The sorority established the Alpha Delta Alpha Omega Chapter on May 30. Among the 25 charter members, the women have successful careers in real estate, finance, medicine, business, and other fields. The group's dedication to community involvement has led them to collaborate with over a dozen local groups during the past year. More than 350 Childhood Hunger Power Packs (also known as CHIPP™ weekend meals) have been distributed, more than 200 Blessing Bags have been put together, an eight-week entrepreneurship training program for women has been facilitated, more than 200 volunteer hours have been completed, and more than £3,000 has been invested in Black-owned businesses. With the help of volunteers and visiting sorority members, the chapter will maintain this focus via its first formal service initiatives. Members will plan events like gathering professional clothing for women returning to work and collecting and distributing children's books written by Black writers. 'These women are already making an enormous difference in and around London,' said Carrie J. Clark, International Regional Director for Alpha Kappa Alpha. 'They are an amazing group of servant leaders who I am confident will expand Alpha Kappa Alpha's legacy of service in the Greater London area for years to come.' The sorority has spearheaded several international projects, including building schools in South Africa during apartheid, providing aid to women and children in Liberia, and reducing poverty in sub-Saharan Africa. Additionally, the sorority founded the For Members Only Federal Credit Union, the nation's first Black-owned, female-led, sorority-based digital financial institution. Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, is the oldest Greek-letter sorority founded by Black college women. The sorority was founded in 1908 on the Howard University campus in Washington, D.C., by nine collegiate women. With more than 365,000 members, it now has members in over 13 countries and territories, including the United Kingdom.
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Black History Month: Impact of the Divine Nine
The Brief The Divine Nine has an important place in Black history. The Divine Nine is the nickname of a group of nine historically Black Greek-letter organizations called the National Pan-Hellenic Council. Members of the Divine Nine are still creating spaces. MILWAUKEE - The Badger State is not home to any historically Black colleges and universities, but students are still being exposed to the culture. The Divine Nine has an important place in Black history. They've been empowering communities for more than a century. What we know Angelina Jolie's daughter, Zahara Marley Jolie, joined Alpha Kappa Alpha at Spelman College. It's the oldest sorority of the Divine Nine. Local perspective Isioma Nwabuzor made the same commitment more than a decade ago. "So I was initiated at Marquette University. I came into Alpha Kappa Alpha as a sophomore when I was 19 years old. I'd had some exposure with African American sororities," Nwabuzor said. "At a PWI like Marquette, it's essential to have community. To have a network. People you can lean on." The backstory And for African Americans pursuing an education in the 1900s? They faced hatred and segregation in every aspect of life. SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News It's from this situation that five fraternities and four sororities formed, creating the Divine Nine. "We weren't readily accepted in spaces. There weren't tables for us," Nwabuzor said. "So we had to create them and so being a part of that history and not only history but what we are doing in current times." What we know Members of the Divine Nine are still creating spaces. Like Sen. Raphael Warnock, the first African American to represent Georgia in the U.S. Senate. He's the first Black Democrat elected to the Senate from a southern state, and a brother of Alpha Phi Alpha. Former Vice President Kamala Harris is the first female and person of African descent elected vice president. Both members of the Divine Nine. FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android Why you should care "The historical things we do to mobilize our communities," Nwabuzor said. "The beauty of our members and all of their individual assets. It's just something that gives you so much pride. Black Greek organizations are lifelong commitments. That is one of our greatest distinctions from your Pan-Hellenic or historically white fraternities and sororities. It goes beyond the collegiate experience." Keushum Willingham, a Milwaukee Public Schools principal, has been a member of Alpha Phi Alpha for 25 years. "I try to wear something Alpha every week because I'm proud of my organization," he said. Pride and inexhaustible service are the reasons the Divine Nine have a place in Black history and Black culture. Together, between undergrad and alumni, the Divine Nine have nearly 4 million members. The Source The information in this post was produced by FOX6 News.
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Highlighting Hope: Theta Delta Omega chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated
ODESSA, Texas (KMID/KPEJ)-Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated is an international service organization, was founded on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 1908, It is the oldest Greek-letter organization established by African American college educated women. Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated was founded on a mission of five basic tenets that remained unchanged since the sorority's inception. The mission of the sorority is to cultivate and encourage high scholastic and ethical standards, to promote unity and friendship among college women, to study and help alleviate problems concerning girls and women in order to improve their social stature, to maintain a progressive interest in college life and to be of 'Service to All Mankind.' Theta Delta Omega chapter was chartered in 1968 led by Mary Johnson who is a chapter member and alive today at almost 90 years old. The chapter is located in Midland is had year around initiatives that are of service to the community. The programs and initiatives include Arts Enrichment, Youth Leadership Institute(YIL), Economic Wealth Building and Childhood Hunger Initiative Power Pack. If you are interested in getting in volunteering or learning more, you can do so here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
In searching for community, Renaldo Blocker helped establish a new alumni chapter of Black fraternity
Feb. 11—ROCHESTER — When Renaldo Blocker moved to Rochester from Los Angeles 12 years ago to accept a position at Mayo Clinic, he felt like he was on his own as a Black man navigating a mostly white city. "I knew absolutely no one," said Blocker, a faculty member and researcher in health systems delivery with Mayo Clinic. Unlike Blocker's home city of Atlanta, Rochester doesn't have predominantly Black neighborhoods where Blocker could expect to find a place to get his hair cut and his favorite familiar foods. "There's no place to go where the Black community is in this area," he said. "That may be good, it may be bad depending on how you look at it." Blocker reached out to a member of his college fraternity he knew lived in the Twin Cities. Unlike Atlanta, L.A. and Madison, Wisconsin, where he earned his doctorate, Rochester didn't have an alumni chapter of the fraternity. Founded in 1911 at Indiana University, Bloomington, Kappa Alpha Psi, is the second oldest collegiate historically Black, Greek-letter fraternity. That friend introduced him to a fraternity member who was living in Rochester. "He was able to help me out, help me look for housing, let me know which barbershops to go to," Blocker said. "Having a navigator here for you is huge." Later, Blocker recognized another brother who was wearing a fraternity lapel pin. Since then, the handful of KAP fraternity brothers living in Rochester would head to the Twin Cities for fraternity alumni balls, gatherings, fundraisers and service events. Now, enough members call Rochester home that Blocker is launching a Rochester alumni chapter. He and the chapter founders held a launch event on Saturday in downtown Rochester. Blocker said members plan to continue to be active in the Twin Cities as well, but for people with demanding residency schedules, that can be difficult. Serving the community through the fraternity's literacy programs and financial literacy for youth initiatives is also appealing to members, he added. The chapter will be easier to find for new arrivals in Rochester who are members and want to learn about the community. "It's not about looking up one person anymore," he said. Nationwide, fraternity alumni include Hakeem Jeffries, U.S. House Minority Leader, and former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick. About a dozen alumni live in Rochester now, Blocker said. "I think now is the right time, given the number of brothers that are here, and the potential of brothers who may be here," he said. Blocker said the number of alumni in the city will likely rise thanks to a combination of people studying, researching or working at Mayo Clinic and its partner organizations or people coming to Rochester for treatment. It's already starting to happen, he said. "Even going out shopping here, I'll run into a brother who I have not met," he said. Blocker added he would like to see an undergraduate chapter of the fraternity in Southeast Minnesota. That would likely need to include students from multiple schools, he said. However, for the first year of the chapter, aspiring members will have to wait. "We probably won't be doing member intake for the first year," Blocker said. The group will focus on building the chapter, ways to serve the community and finding partners to work with on service events.
