After Celebrating 102 Years of Scholarship, Service, Sisterhood, and Finer Womanhood, Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. Says Goodbye to the City of Brotherly Love

Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc., one of the country’s largest women’s service organizations, ended their 2022 Grand Boulè on Sunday, July 24, 2022 after a week of sorority business meetings, service-oriented projects, and celebratory moments. 

Valerie Hollingsworth Baker, the sorority’s 25^th “Centennial” International President, focused this Grand Boulè on honoring the legacy of the sorority’s founders through the theme, “Honoring Our Founders, Continuing Their Legacy, The Dream Lives On!”

“It was an absolute honor to celebrate our 2022 Grand Boulè in Philadelphia this year,” said Hollingsworth Baker. “Over the week-long period, our sorority brought over 6,000 members to the city, provided over $640,000 in donations, and left behind an economic impact of over $6.5 million. With scholarship being a principle I hold in high regard, I am especially happy that Zeta Phi Beta provided a $125,000 scholarship to a deserving high school student as she embarks on a college education.”

During the 7-day Grand Boulè, the agenda included:

• A Zeta National Educational Foundation (Z-NEF) sponsored “Z-NEF Scholars for Dollars” event that comprised of a Battle of the DJs and Step Show
• The 2022 Grand Boulè Opening Ceremony where the Founder Myrtle Tyler Faithful $125,000 scholarship was awarded to Skyler Evans, a high school senior from Baton Rouge; Zeta members Opal Lee, “the Grandmother of Juneteenth,” and Elisabeth Omilami, actress and CEO of Hosea Helps, an Atlanta-based non-profit organization, received recognition as P.E.A.R.L.S. Society honorees
• The Macy’s x Kasper Fashion Show event
• Honorary member induction of Dawnn Lewis, actress, singer and philanthropist into Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc.
• A gala awards dinner where the work of local chapters across the sorority were honored and celebrated. Donations were provided to St. Jude Children Research Hospital, Micah’s Voice, and Thomas Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia
• A concert by the legendary Mary J. Blige and a closing inspirational breakfast with performances by gospel artists Jekalyn Carr and Hezekiah Walker

About Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated

Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated was founded in 1920 on the campus of Howard University, and is headquartered in Washington, D.C. Zeta has initiated a diverse membership of more than 125,000 college-educated women with more than 850 chapters in North America, Europe, Asia, the Caribbean, Africa and the Middle East.

For more information about Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. visit www.zphib1920.org.

Alpha Tau Omega Chapter, San Antonio’s local chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated celebrated the Sorority’s 114th Founding Anniversary with a day on and not a day off. For this year’s Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. service project they hosted a Community-wide Food and Winter Items Drive. Members collected can goods, non-perishable items, winter wear clothing (hoodies, gloves, jackets, etc.), and blankets. The ladies braved the cold and withstood the windy gusts Saturday morning. Their work was not in vain as they continue to be a service to all mankind.

Thanks to the donations from chapter members and the community, several hundred pounds of food as well as winter wear was collected and will be donated to support the San Antonio Food Bank and homeless street outreach efforts in San Antonio.

Despite progress and national focus, historically Black colleges and universities across the country still need public support

 For the fourth consecutive year, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated^® will earmark on a progressive goal to raise $1 million in 24 hours for their national HBCU Impact Day initiative.  Set for Monday, September 20, 2021, the annual fundraiser is a part of the sorority’s four-year, $10 million commitment to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) led by AKA International President and CEO Dr. Glenda Glover. The organization’s more than 300,000 college-educated members, corporate partners, and donors are challenged to make contributions to assist with the ongoing fiscal sustainability and operations of the more than 100 HBCUs around the country.

Dr. Glover, who is also president of Tennessee State University and an HBCU graduate, says while HBCUs are currently experiencing a renaissance that has brought about a new level of awareness, more must be done for their survival and long-term sustainability.

“The contributions of HBCUs can no longer be overlooked. Just look to the White House or the United States Congress.”Tweet this

“Despite the recent national attention given to HBCUs in 2021 and incremental state and federal funding, HBCUs still lag far behind other institutions of higher education when it comes to ongoing and sustainable support,” adds Dr. Glover. 

In 2021, the sorority gifted $1.6 million to 35 eligible four-year HBCUs.  The endowments on these campuses will grow in perpetuity and help schools reduce student debt through scholarships, fund industry-specific research, and provide much-needed infrastructure maintenance. Those funds are proving to be extremely crucial during the current climate in higher education.

HBCUs continue to be under-funded and now have an added burdened of operational challenges with the impact of the ever evolving COVID-19 pandemic.  

“Now more than ever is the time for Alpha Kappa Alpha to step up, as we have done for more than 113 years, along with our partners and continue our call to action for our historic institutions of higher education,” Glover contends. “The contributions of HBCUs can no longer be overlooked or minimized. Just look to the White House or the United States Congress. HBCUs account for nearly 25% of bachelor’s degrees granted to African Americans. I cannot imagine a world without HBCUs, but I can imagine how much stronger the world would be if we all supported the HBCU community.”

Members and supporters have surpassed the $1 million goal for the past three years. Last year’s Impact Day raised $1.3 million in 2020.

HBCU Impact Day is part of the sorority’s recognition of HBCU Week.  On September 20, chapters around the globe will host fundraising events in support of the $1 million fundraising goal. Interested donors can make contributions by giving by mail or online at http://donate.akaeaf.org during the 24-hour campaign.  For more information on the sorority’s commitment to HBCUs, visit www.AKA1908.com

About Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated®
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated (AKA) is an international service organization that was founded on the campus of Howard University in Washington, D.C. in 1908. It is the oldest Greek-letter organization established by African-American, college-educated women. Alpha Kappa Alpha is comprised of over 300,000 members in more than 1,000 graduate and undergraduate chapters in the United States, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Liberia, Bahamas, Bermuda, the Caribbean, Canada, Japan, Germany, South Korea, South Africa, and in the Middle East. Led by International President and Chief Executive Officer, Glenda Glover Ph.D., Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated is often hailed as “America’s premier Greek-letter organization for African-American women.” Visit www.aka1908.com for more information.

About the AKA Educational Advancement Foundation
Over 40 years ago, the Educational Advancement Foundation was established by Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. to promote lifelong learning.  It is now the largest minority-owned women’s foundation in the country with assets totaling over $22.7 million.  The foundation has donated over $6.5 million for scholarships, fellowships, and community assistance grants and is an organization with a rich and distinguished history of service that spans nearly a century.  Creating the Educational Advancement Foundation was the method by which Alpha Kappa Alpha. Inc. sought to ensure that there would always be support for education, its oldest program of service.  Today, the Foundation, a financially strong and viable organization, is a powerful tool for good, pooling the resources of others who share this vision of providing a perpetual source of support for education. 

Alpha Kappa Alpha implements an AKA HBCU Endowment Initiative in partnership with EAF, in which an endowed scholarship will be established at each accredited four-year HBCU.  The goal is to stamp the Alpha Kappa Alpha brand of financial support on each HBCU campus to help students remain in school, complete their course of study, and receive their college degrees. For more information about the Educational Advancement Foundation, please visit www.akaeaf.org.