History
Alpha Chi Omega is a national women’s fraternity that was founded on October 15, 1885, at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. The sorority was founded by seven forward-thinking women who wanted to create a sisterhood that was based on empowerment, leadership, and philanthropy. These women recognized that there were limited opportunities for women at the time, and they wanted to create a space where women could support and inspire one another to achieve their goals. Since its founding, Alpha Chi Omega has grown to become one of the largest and most prestigious sororities in the country, with over 200 chapters and more than 200,000 initiated members. The sorority is dedicated to promoting sisterhood, academic excellence, and service to others, and has been recognized for its commitment to philanthropy and community involvement.
One of the unique aspects of Alpha Chi Omega is our strong focus on music. In fact, our official symbol is the lyre, a stringed instrument that was played by the ancient Greeks to accompany poetry and song. Our sorority is deeply committed to music and the arts, and we have a long history of supporting music education and advocacy. Our dedication to music reflects our commitment to excellence, creativity, and the power of the arts to transform lives.
The Kappa Nu chapter at Carnegie Mellon University was founded on April 29, 2006.
Symbols
Lyre
Alpha Chi Omega began as a women's fraternity which required members to have musical backgrounds. While this requirement has long since been removed, we pay homage to our musical heritage by using the lyre, the first instrument played on Mt Olympus by the gods, as our official symbol.
Pearl
The pearl is known as the 'stone of sincerity', bringing truth to situations and loyalty to a cause. The first Alpha Chis believed that this represented the standards of our members, and reflected our dedication to our philanthropy, Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevention.
Red Carnation
Our founders chose Scarlet Red and Olive Green as our fraternity's colors in honor of its autumn founding. The red carnation was chosen because of its usage in Greek ceremonial crowns, its color, which reflects our fraternity's colors, and its symbolism, deep love and affection, a tribute to our unconditional sisterhood.