History

On October 10, 1872, ten outstanding women at Syracuse University founded the Alpha Phi Fraternity. Clara Bradley Wheeler Baker Burdette, Hattie Florence Chidester Lukens, Martha Emily Foote Crow, Ida Arabella Gilbert DeLamanter Houghton, Jane Sara Higham, Kate Elizabeth Hogoboom Gilbert, Elizabeth Grace Hubbell Shults, Rena A. Michaels Atchison, Louise Viola Shepard Hancock, and Clara Sittser Williams were ten of the first twenty women admitted to Syracuse, and saw a need for a social center for women, a tie of sisterhood that would unite a circle of friends, and thus they created Alpha Phi.  Because of their exceptional leadership and guidance, Alpha Phi has flourished and grown to include over 150 chapters throughout the United States and Canada, and remains the strong sisterhood that our founders intended it to be. 

Alpha Phi Firsts

  • Called the world's first inter-sorority meeting, a group that later became the National Panhellenic Conference
  • Alpha Phi built the world's first sorority house on the campus of Syracuse University in 1872.
  • Alpha Phi was the first sorority to use traveling delegates to monitor chapters. These women are now known as Educational Leadership Consultants and District Governors.
  • Alpha Phi was the first women's society to use Greek letters as an emblem.
  • Alpha Phi was the first sorority to establish a foundation, The Alpha Phi Foundation, in 1957.
  • Alpha Phi was the first NPC group to establish a presence on the World Wide Web.
  • Alpha Phi was the first sorority to publish a book-length history.

Alpha Phi Facts

  • Alpha Phi is the third largest women's sorority and one of only three international sororities with 150 chapters in the US and Canada.
  • Alpha Phi was founded in 1872 by 10 of the first 20 women to enter Syracuse University.
  • Alpha Phi is the fourth oldest national women's sorority.
  • Alpha Phi is pronounced Alpha "fee" (long "e") not "fie," because a Syracuse Greek professor informed our founding sisters that it was the correct Greek pronunciation.
  • Three of our founders were listed in Who's Who of America: Clara Bradley Burdette, Martha Foote Crow, and Rena Michaels Atchison.
  • Alpha Phi is a true "international" sorority. It has maintained the longest continuous presence in Canada of any sorority. The Xi chapter was established at the University of Toronto in 1906.
  • Alpha Phi has over 175 active alumnae chapters.

Traditions


The Alpha Phi Motto
The Alpha Phi open motto is: "Union Hand in Hand"

Alpha Phi's New Member Badge
When women first join Alpha Phi, they are given the New Member Pin, which is an ivy leaf set in pewter. The ivy leaf, our symbol, is representative of the way our lives intertwine with one another.
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Alpha Phi's Badge         
     
The official badge of Alpha Phi is an unjeweled monogram of gold showing the symbol of "Alpha" superimposed upon the symbol of "Phi." Inscribed in black on the symbol Phi are the letters A, O, E.
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The Alpha Phi Crest

The Fraternity Crest is the Alpha Phi Coat-of-Arms, adopted by Convention delegates in 1922. The shield is bordeaux with a scroll and ivy leaf above it. Inscribed on the scroll is the public motto, “Union hand in hand”. A bar of silver crosses the shield from left to right; the upper half of the shield contains a Roman lamp in silver and the lower half, Ursa Major. 
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The Alpha Phi Symbol

The ivy leaf is the symbol of Alpha Phi, representing the intertwining of our lives as we become friends and sisters in Alpha Phi.  It is also symbolic of the way sisters are connected through intellectual, philanthropic, and social pursuits within Alpha Phi. 
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The Alpha Phi Colors

Silver and Bordeaux are Alpha Phi's rich and distinct colors, changed from blue and gold in 1879 because it was noted that a fraternity shared those colors.  Members wear their colors in the form of a ribbon of silver and bordeaux, under their badge to acknowledge special occasions, the installation of a new chapter, the anniversary of their chapter's installation or the celebration of Alpha Phi Founders' Day, October 10 
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The Alpha Phi Mascot

Our mascot is the "Phi Bear," adopted in 1974. The name comes from the Greek words Ursa Major, or the Great Bear.



For more information, please visit the official Alpha Phi Fraternity website.


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