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Mission Statement

It is the mission of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. to enhance the quality of life for women and their families in the U.S. and globally through community service, civil, and social action. Our goal is to achieve greater progress in the areas of education, health awareness, and leadership development. Our members, affiliates, staff, and community partners work to create and support initiatives that align with our vision.

The Story of Sigma Gamma Rho

Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated was organized on November 12, 1922, in Indianapolis, Indiana, by seven young educators: Mary Lou Allison Gardner Little, Dorothy Hanley Whiteside, Vivian Irene White Marbury, Nannie Mae Gahn Johnson, Hattie Mae Annette Dulin Redford, Bessie Mae Downey Rhoades Martin, and Cubena McClure.

The group became an incorporated national collegiate sorority on December 30, 1929, when a charter was granted to the Alpha chapter at Butler University.

Since its inception, the dynamic women of Sigma Gamma Rho have built and sustained a well-known and well-respected reputation for leading positive change to help uplift the community through sisterhood, leadership, and service.

Alpha Charter 1924

Sigma Gamma Rho has welcomed more than 100,000 collegiate and professional women from every profession. The sorority has more than 500 chapters in the United States, Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, Germany, South Korea, U.S. Virgin Islands, and the United Arab Emirates. The organization also has active affiliate groups devoted to empowering women at different stages in life. The Rhoer Club Affiliates (teenage girls) and Philos Affiliates (friends of the sorority) also assist alumnae chapters with various service efforts and programs.

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Sigma Gamma Rho’s commitment to service is expressed in its slogan, “Greater Service, Greater Progress.” The sorority has a proud history of providing positive and proactive community outreach nationally and internationally. The programs, partnerships, and sponsorships represent Sigma Gamma Rho’s commitment to promoting the greater good in education, service, and leadership development. In 2004, the National Headquarters moved from Chicago, Illinois to its current home in Cary, North Carolina. Sigma women are dedicated to helping each other and their personal success is recognized in The AURORA and through various awards.

Chapter History

In 1927, Indiana National Organizer Soror Helen Brooks of Alpha Chapter

(Butler University) responded to the invitation extended by Sorors Roberta Anderson

Mahoney and Ida Laws of Eta Chapter (Northwestern University) to organize

Delta Sigma Chapter in Chicago. Inspired by the goals of the national chapter, the

charter members began their activity of community service and expansion through

a close working relationship with Eta Chapter.

 

The story of the growth and development of the Delta Sigma Chapter cannot be told without the inclusion of its grassroots, which were deeply embedded in the Eta Chapter. Eta Chapter was the first Sigma Gamma Rho Chapter established in the Chicago area. Most of its members were inspired to work for a graduate chapter in the city and after graduation, most of the members later transferred to Delta Sigma.

DELTA SIGMA HAS AN EXTENSIVE HISTORY. FROM...

  • Soror Zenobia Laws Bailey, who wrote the Sorority Hymn in 1933 to

  • Soror Florence Wilkinson, Editor-in-Chief of The Aurora in 1934 to

  • Soror L. Eudora Ashburne, the first Black woman to graduate from Howard Medical School to

  • Soror Annie Lawrence Brown, 13th International Grand Basileus (1971-1976) to

  • Soror Bonita M. Herring, 23rd International Grand Basileus (2012-2016)

Delta Sigma enhances pursuit of academic excellence and development of social graces.

The Chapter provides opportunities for experience in cultural, community and civic activities,

and growth in leadership abilities to project a dignified mentor image for Sorors and Affiliates.

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