Delta Founders

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Founder who selected the Delta mottoes; a member of the Repertory Playhouse Associates of New York as a student and actress; had a role in “Between Two Worlds” at the Belasco Theatre on Broadway; while Directress of the American Negro Theatre, she directed a play, “Days of Our Youth” in which Sidney Poitier and Harry Belafonte made their dramatic debuts; taught dramatics at Bennett College in Greensboro, NC and was the Directress of the Harlem School of the Arts

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Osceola McCarthy Adams:

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was a constant supporter of Alpha Chapter’s activities and projects

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Marguerite Young Alexander:

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First Custodian of Alpha Chapter; first Black social worker with the New York City and New York County Charities; went to Jacksonville, FL where she became a social worker for “Color Indigents” with the Duval County Welfare Board

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Winona Cargile Alexander:

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First Vice President of Alpha Chapter; first black teacher in Richmond County, NY; professor at Delaware State College, Dover, DE; was extremely active in community and civic affairs, Charter Member of the Queens (NY) Alumnae Chapter; was unreachable for about three years while living with Benjamin and Theresa Hines

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Ethel Cuff Black

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The only Black student to enroll in Montrose High School where she later became the valedictorian; in 1980 marched through the streets of Seattle with supporters of the Equal Rights Amendment in honor of the suffragettes; in 1981 at the age of 92 she led 10,000 Deltas in a march down Washington, D.C.’s Pennsylvania Ave. to commemorate the Founder’s participation in the suffrage march in 1913; was honored on her 100th birthday in Seattle as a centenarian in a state also observing its 100th anniversary; worked with Seattle YWCA and was a Charter Member of the Christian Friends for Racial Equality; honored by the Metropolitan YWCA and the Washington State Human Rights Commission

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Bertha Pitts Campbell:

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First Reporter for Alpha Chapter; very active in college affairs; one of two seniors featured in the Crisis Magazine in 1913; moved to California where she began singing with a chorus, doing background music for movies; she also did backup singing for television shows; attended business college at night while working daytimes as a security officer for the Department of Employment for the State of California

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Zephyr Chisom Carter:

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Arts and Science major who was president and valedictorian of her graduating class; was a quiet and effective member of Alpha Chapter committees; married Frank Coleman, one of the Founders of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity

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Edna Brown Coleman

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: First Recording Secretary of Alpha Chapter; instrumental in integrating the Galveston Public School System; the city recognized her contributions by placing her portrait on permanent display in the Texas Cultural Archives

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Jessie McGuire Dent

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First Sergeant-At-Arms of Alpha Chapter; name was spelled wrong with a “k” on the Certificate of Incorporation of Delta Sigma Theta; helped establish a YWCA for Black women in Dallas TX, and was Director of the Emergency Relief Station for Blacks in her home town; a Charter Member of the Dallas Alumnae Chapter

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Frederica Chase Dodd

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First President of both Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and its first chapter Alpha Chapter on the Howard University campus; became active in the NAACP and the National Council of Negro Women, and chartered the San Antonio (TX) Alumnae Chapter; Co-Chairman of the 19th National Convention in San Antonio; in 1963, co-chaired Delta’s Golden Anniversary Celebration, which was addressed by President John F. Kennedy

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Myra Davis Hemmings

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A constant supporter of the Alpha Chapter; was an accomplished pianist who taught school in Washington, D.C

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Olive John