In 1870, only eight state universities were coeducational; the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas, was one of the eight. Its women’s fraternity system dates to April 1, 1873, when the Kansas Alpha chapter of Pi Beta Phi** was chartered. A Lawrence woman, Sara Richardson, was a student at Lombard College in Galesburg, Illinois. She encouraged her three sisters who were students at Kansas to form a chapter of her fraternity. The first valedictorian at the University of Kansas, Flora Richardson, was a founding member of the chapter.
Kappa Alpha Theta’s Kappa chapter came into beginning in a most round about manner. A letter of inquiry was sent to the Eta chapter in Ann Arbor rather than Alpha chapter at DePauw University. Eta member Lee Bird visited Lawrence and on March 18, 1881, the chapter was installed.
In the early 1880s, a group of women discussed forming a third women’s fraternity on campus. A fraternity man on campus had a fraternity brother whose wife was a Kappa Kappa Gamma alumna. Through this contact, the Omega chapter was installed with eight charter members on December 17, 1883.
The three groups, in the spring of 1888, “began to talk seriously of adopting some methods by which ‘rushing’ might be stopped.” Several informal meetings were held, and the subject carefully discussed. It was finally decided to draw up an inter-fraternity pledge, which is as follows:
“WHEREAS, It is on all hands admitted that the practice of ‘rushing’ is unworthy of womanly dignity, is highly injurious to the University, to the secret societies, and to new students; we, the members of Kappa Kappa Gamma, I.C. (Pi Beta Phi)., and Kappa Alpha Theta, through our committees in joint session assembled, do resolve:
” I. That the following pledge be incorporated in the by-laws of our societies, and made one of the fundamental and governing principles:
“PLEDGE.
“(a) We, the members of Omega chapter, of Kappa Kappa Gamma, Kansas Alpha chapter, of I. C (Pi Beta Phi), and Kappa chapter, of Kappa Alpha Theta, hereby individually and collectively pledge ourselves not to initiate, pledge, or invite any girl, directly or indirectly, or through any medium whatever, to join our fraternity until said girl shall have attended the university three months, and during that time shall have pursued, regularly and continuously, at least two studies or their equivalents.
“(b) To give all invitations to membership through written communications of prescribed form, sent by mail.
“(c) If any of our members, initiated or pledged, violate the above, we agree that she shall be answerable to the joint standing committee of the societies.
- 2. That at the beginning of each school year notices be inserted in all the current University papers, stating these rules governing the admission of new members.
- 3. That these resolutions and pledge be subject to amendment as necessity shall demand.
- 4· That these resolutions and pledge shall go into effect from this day, June 1st, 1888.
“(Signed,) KATE MERRILL, EMMA BARTELL, HARRIET MACDONALD, of Kappa Alpha Theta
“MARY MANLEY, GERTRUDE CROTTY, CARA STERLING, of I.C. Sorosis (Pi Beta Phi)
“ANNIE MCKINNON, ALICE ROPES, MARY STIMPSON, 0f Kappa Kappa Gamma.”
The above pledge was printed in the December, 1888 Arrow of Pi Beta Phi. The chapter correspondent added the following commentary, “The prescribed three months have not yet expired, but so far the pledge has been kept, and the new plan is working admirably. We hope this may furnish a suggestion to one or many chapters which shall be very helpful.”
The National Panhellenic Conference was founded in 1902; it took on the task of overseeing rushing, as it had come to be known. This term refers to a time when there was a haste to pledge and initiate women as quickly as possible. Today, the process is called recruitment and, on almost all campuses, the recruitment process is like a finely tuned, well-oiled, machine.
Omega Chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma, University of Kansas, late 1800s
*The eight coeducational state universities in 1870 were the Universities of Kansas, Iowa, Wisconsin, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Michigan, and California, according to higher education historian Mabel Newcomer.
** Pi Beta Phi was founded as I.C. Sorosis on April 28, 1867. Pi Beta Phi was its secret motto. In the 1870s, collegiate chapters began a dialogue on changing the name to the Greek letters. When the vote was taken in 1888, there was never any discussion on which Greek letters to use, as I.C. Sorosis and Pi Beta Phi were one and the same. Several chapters started to use the Greek letters before the vote was taken and the first issue of The Arrow of Pi Beta Phi, printed by the chapter at the University of Kansas in 1885, stated “The Official Organ of Pi Beta Phi.”
To read more about the history of the University of Kansas women’s fraternity/sorority system, visit http://wp.me/p20I1i-LW
(c) Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2013. All Rights Reserved.
