They are more than the music and stepping in front of the Union twice a week. They are more than the letters and colors. The National Panhellenic Council is a collection of nine historically African-American Greek sororities and fraternities, the earliest of which began in the 1900s. Each advocates community service, education, and cultural and economic service. Each emphasizes the history and importance of black excellence in America. This Black History Month, The Daily Mississippian highlights these nine university chapters.
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. – Buka Okoye
“I’ve always been interested in Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.,” senior Buka Okoye, 22, said.
A public policy major from Clinton, Okoye said he had a shock when he first attended Ole Miss. Okoye said there were several factors that played into him wanting to be Greek. He said the presence on campus of his fraternity motivated to him to join and represent the African-American community in a bigger way.
The fraternity was chartered at Cornell University in 1906. Now, the Ole Miss Nu Upsilon Chapter, which was founded in 1978, is one of more than 700 chapters. Okoye said he is inspired by civil rights icons who have crossed as Alphas before him, such as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Jesse Owens.
“It’s ultimately empowering,” Okoye said.
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc- Arina Jackson and Mikala McNeil
Alpha Kappa Alpha members Arina Jackson and Mikala McNeil stand out in a crowd with their salmon pink and apple green jackets.
“Almost every female in my family is AKA,” Jackson said. “Of course (my family) led me that way, but I weighed my options (before joining).”
Jackson said although she already had strong family ties to her sorority, it gave her an expanded definition of sisterhood. It also gave her a new conception of service, Jackson said.
“We are all dedicated to service and leadership…We all want to break barriers in the community, especially the black community.”
For McNeil, the only Greek family she had was her uncle. He crossed at Ole Miss, and her mother was a sweetheart while she was in college, but McNeil said they always knew she would choose Greek life.
“My uncle knew that growing up around him and his Kappa brothers…they would influence me in some ways,” McNeil said. “They said, ‘If you want to be a part of an organization that is dedicated to service and sisterhood…it’s something to consider.’”
McNeil said her Greek experience that has impacted her has been serving others through her sisterhood.
“You can have somebody who is not even blood (related), and you can have a special bond with someone,” McNeil said. “It has shaped me into who I am today.”
Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. – Anico Kimble
Memphis native Anico Kimble came to Ole Miss and crossed as Kappa Alpha Psi because of his mother, who joined Delta Sigma Theta when she was a student. He wanted the family, “the brotherhood” of being involved.
“It’s made me a better man,” Kimble said. “It helped me grow up faster.”
Kimble said his brothers constantly pushed him to stay focused on personal and professional development, which was a change for him as a freshman. Now he is nearly graduated from the Meek School of Journalism and New Media with a degree in integrated marketing communications. He wants to work in Texas.
“It showed me that the world is not given to you, that you have to take what you want and you have to be goal-oriented,” Kimble said.
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. – A.J. and C.J. Moore
Some join fraternities to learn a sense of brotherhood, but twins A.J. Moore, a civil engineering major, and C.J. Moore, a banking and finance major, say they cannot get much closer. The 21-year-old twins are both members of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity and play on the Ole Miss football team.
“It was easy,” C.J. said. “It was just building on what we already had.”
The pair stands tall together in purple and camouflage with glittering gold boots. For his brother, A.J. said his fraternity has given him more brothers as an extension outside of his twin.
“Besides me and C.J. being blood, there is not much of a difference (between the fraternity and football team brotherhood),” A.J. said.
His brother C.J. said they can still enjoy a sense of brotherhood with others, where they feel as close to others as they do one another, but it takes more work.
“I think it works its way to that point where it feels that way,” C.J. said. “We’ve always wanted to do this together,” the twins said in unison.
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. – Tysiannna Marino
The Ole Miss chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., which was founded in 1974 on campus, felt “just like home” to Tysianna Marino.
The charter chapter was founded in 1913 at Howard University.
“Seeing the unity and the sisterhood…really made me interested in the Greek life.”
Marino said her sorority has given her confidence in herself she did not know she had.
“It…forced me to be the best version of myself,” Marino said.
When she looks back on her time at Ole Miss, she cannot choose one moment that is her favorite; it was the whole spring 2016 semester. Marino said her sorority kept her “afloat” during a really trying time for her.
“Any time I was up against the wall, I knew they were there for me,” Marino said.
After graduation, the Pascagoula native wants to work toward reforming the American prison system.
“It’s big piece of the cookie to bite, but that’s what I want to do,” Marino said. “(My sorority) definitely pushed me to do more.”
Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. – Jaylen Payne
Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. member Jaylen Payne had a few family members cross before him, but he really sees his purpose in encouraging his peers and younger students. He credits his fraternity to helping him gain not only confidence he had never felt before but also more of a desire to pass it on to others.
“My community didn’t have a lot of positivity,” Payne said.
He felt that encouraging others gave him a purpose in life. One of the projects he is most passionate about is mentoring young African-American students in the Lafayette County School District.
“Now that I’ve grown up, I see the same kids; different…but with the same attitude,” Payne said.
Payne said being a part of a brotherhood that is bound by values more than blood has given him the opportunity to spread the positivity even more.
“That’s why I wear these letters,” Payne said.
Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. Keyundra Cole
Keyundra Cole is from Ashland, but she has always felt welcome at the Tau Eta chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. The sorority was founded in 1920 and has more than 800 chapters nationwide. The Ole Miss chapter was started in 1976.
“We’re like a family,” Cole said. “Like a family away from home…I’m not far away (from my real family), but I don’t have a big family.”
Cole’s parents died separately when she was 6 years old, so she and her sister grew up in their grandmother’s home.
“I call (my grandmother) mom,” Cole said.
She said after out of scholarship, service, sisterhood and womanhood, she feels like her sisters have helped her grow into her own person. Cole said a big part of being in Zeta is about upholding each other to higher standards.
“In Zeta, they push you. They motivate you,” Cole said.
Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. – Tiara Mabry
Tiara Mabry, a senior Sigma Gamma Rho sorority member, said she joined because of “being able to use all of those programs and better the community was really, really important to me,” Mabry said.
Mabry’s sorort was one of the first African American Greek sororities to be founded on a predominantly white campus in 1922 by seven schoolteachers. The Ole Miss chapter was chartered in 1994. Mabry said she appreciates her sororities value of being an individual.
“Sigma Gamma Rho means not being someone who fits in a line, but more of who makes a line better,” Mabry said.
She said the members of Sigma Gamma Rho have come together and made the organization better and in return the organization has made them better.
“We really pride on quality over quantity,” Mabry said. “At this point I could not imagine my life without Sigma Gamma Rho,” Mabry said. “It’s opened up so many doors…(it’s) furthered my career more than I probably would have ever imagined at this age.”
Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc.- Malik Pridgeon
Malik Pridgeon, a junior public policy major, said he partly joined Iota Phi Theta because was founded on his Sept. 19 birthday, but also because the fraternity stood out to him in embracing individuality.
“I wanted to be who I was,” Pridgeon said. “I see myself as a visionary; someone who does want to create something, does want to stay true to who they are, but also take us to a new level.”
Pridgeon said he can imagine what college would have been like without the support he has had from his fraternity brothers, but he does not like it. Unlike others who look forward to crossing in their father’s footsteps at college, Pridgeon was not a legacy. He said he had family members in another fraternity, but none had heard of Iota.
“I still get a lot of hate because of it,” Pridgeon said. “It’s difficult, but that’s what being an Iota is about. It takes a man.”
