Eta Phi Beta

Eta Phi Beta is an African American business sorority located in the United States and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It was founded in Detroit, Michigan at the Historically [black colleges and universities|historically black] Lewis Business College in October 1942. In 1997, the organization had 91 chapters and over 5,000 members internationally.

History

Eta Phi Beta was established by students at the historically black Lewis Business College in Detroit, Michigan in October 1942. Eta Phi Beta was founded to foster women to enter into the world of business. Its founders were Ivy Burt Banks, Dorothy Sylvers Brown, Earline Carter, Mae Edwards Curry, Katherine Douglas, Atheline Shelton Graham, Merry Green Hubbard, Ethel Madison, Ann Porter, Mattie Rankin, and Lena Reed.
The sorority was incorporated in 1943. Additional chapters were chartered at schools such as St. Augustine's University as well as the city of Indianapolis. In 1977, the Michigan state House of Representatives approved a resolution making May 14, 1977 the Eta Phi Beta Sorority Day.
The sorority had over 80 chapters nationwide in 2002. On June 13, 2009, the 81st Texas Legislature House of Representatives honored Eta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. to commemorate its 2009 Founders Day. Another resolution was made in the state of Georgia.
Eta Phi Beta is an affiliate member of the National Council of Negro Women. It is also a member of the Coalition of Black Business Sororities, which also includes Gamma Phi Delta, Iota Phi Lambda, and Lambda Kappa Mu.

Symbols

The sorority's colors are crimson, gold, and black. Its motto is "Not For Ourselves, But For Others."

Activities

Chapters meet monthly from September to June. The sorority hosts its national convention, The Grand Boule', biennially on even-numbered years. Regional conferences are held biennially on odd-numbered years.
Eta Phi Beta funds various charitable organizations including the March of Dimes, the NAACP, and the United Negro College Fund. Its main national charitable project is services for citizens with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The biennial Gloria Chapman Walk-a-thon raises funds for community-based organizations that work in this area. Nationally, the sorority also supports breast cancer awareness and domestic violence prevention.
Chapters, regions, and the Grand chapter all award annual scholarships for high school graduates and college students. Chapters also support programs and provide tutoring to teach young children life skills, reading, mathematics literary, and social etiquette. Some chapters host an annual Cotillion Ball that introduces children into society.
Established in 1949, the National Council of Shads is an auxiliary organization of Eta Phi Beta, consisting of the husbands of sorority members. It provides conducts community service projects and provides scholarships.

Membership

Membership is open to women who are college graduates or have completed at least two years of college; potential members may apply to join or are invited to join by members of the sorority. Eta Phi Beta has a 3-month initiation process. There are two also Youth Groups, Gamma and Lambda chapters, for children ages six to eleven.

Chapters

Following is a list of Eta Phi Beta chapters. Most chapters are community-based. There are two Youth Chapters, Gamma and Lambda, which are for children ages six to eleven. The Beta series chapters were chartered at colleges and universities but have all gone inactive. Active chapters are indicated in bold. Inactive chapters are in italics.

Chapter	Charter date and range	Institution	Location	Region	Status
Alpha			Detroit, Michigan	Northern	Active
Beta			Battle Creek, Michigan	Northern	Inactive
Gamma			Cleveland, Ohio	Northern	Active
Delta			West Palm Beach, Florida	Southeastern	Active
Epsilon			Dallas, Texas	Southern	Active
Zeta			Columbus, Ohio	Northern	Inactive
Eta			Fort Worth, Texas	Southern	Active
Theta			Ecorse, Michigan	Northern	Inactive
Iota			Fort Lauderdale, Florida	Southeastern	Active
Kappa			Los Angeles, California	Western	Active
Lambda			Dayton, Ohio	Northern	Active
Mu			Shaker Heights, Ohio	Northern	Inactive
Nu			Jacksonville, Florida	Southeastern	Active
Xi			Houston, Texas	Southern	Active
Omicron			New Orleans, Louisiana	Southern	Active
Pi			Maywood, Illinois	Northern	Inactive
Rho			Tulsa, Oklahoma	Southern	Inactive
Grand			Detroit, Michigan	Northern	Active
Tau			Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	Southern	Active
Upsilon			Pasadena, California	Western	Inactive
Phi			Wichita, Kansas	Southern	Inactive
Chi			New York, New York	Eastern	Inactive
Psi			Newark, New Jersey	Eastern	Inactive
Alpha Alpha			Seattle, Washington	Western	Inactive
Alpha Beta			Oakland, California	Western	Inactive
Alpha Gamma			Miami, Florida	Southeastern	Active
Alpha Delta			Richmond, Virginia	Eastern	Active
Alpha Epsilon First			Sheffield, Alabama	Southeastern	Inactive
Alpha Epsilon			Raleigh, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Active
Alpha Zeta			Washington, D.C.	Eastern	Active
Alpha Eta			Goldsboro, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Alpha Theta			Durham, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Active
Alpha Iota			Gainesville, Florida	Southeastern	Active
Alpha Kappa			Williamson, West Virginia	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Alpha Lambda			Chicago, Illinois	Northern	Active
Alpha Mu			St. Louis, Missouri	Southern	Inactive
Alpha Nu			Atlantic City, New Jersey	Eastern	Inactive
Alpha Xi			Indianapolis, Indiana	Northern	Inactive
Alpha Omicron			Delray Beach, Florida	Southeastern	Active
Alpha Pi			Milwaukee, Wisconsin	Northern	Active
Alpha Rho	1973		Greensboro, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Active
Alpha Sigma			Wilmington, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Alpha Tau			Willingboro, New Jersey	Eastern	Inactive
Alpha Upsilon					Unassigned ?
Alpha Phi			Albuquerque, New Mexico	Western	Inactive
Alpha Chi			Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands	Southeastern	Active
Alpha Psi			Carson, California	Western	Active
Alpha Omega			Huntsville, Alabama	Southeastern	Active
Beta Alpha		Virginia Union University	Richmond, Virginia	Eastern	Inactive
Beta Beta		Virginia State University	Ettrick, Virginia	Eastern	Inactive
Beta Gamma		San Jose State University	San Jose, California	Western	Inactive
Beta Delta		St. Augustine's University	Raleigh, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Beta Eta		Central State University	Wilberforce, Ohio	Northern	Inactive
Beta Zeta		Florida Memorial College	Miami, Florida	Southeastern	Inactive
Beta Epsilon		University of Southern California	Los Angeles, California	Western	Inactive
Gamma Alpha			Lake Elsinore, California	Western	Inactive
Gamma Beta			Nashville, Tennessee	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Gamma Gamma			Asbury Park, New Jersey	Eastern	Inactive
Gamma Delta			Fayetteville, Alabama	Southeastern	Inactive
Gamma Epsilon			Tuscaloosa, Alabama	Southeastern	Active
Gamma Zeta			Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands	Southeastern	Inactive
Gamma Eta			Racine, Wisconsin	Northern	Inactive
Gamma Theta			Atlanta, Georgia	Southeastern	Inactive
Gamma Iota			Greenville, Mississippi	Southeastern	Active
Gamma Kappa			Baton Rouge, Louisiana	Southern	Inactive
Gamma Lambda			Sedalia, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Gamma Mu			Reform, Alabama	Southeastern	Active
Gamma Nu			Little Rock, Arkansas	Southern	Active
Gamma Xi			Whiteville, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Gamma Pi			Birmingham, Alabama	Southeastern	Inactive
Gamma Omicron			Ramseur, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Gamma Rho			Homestead, Florida	Southeastern	Active
Gamma Sigma			Oxford, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Gamma Tau			Lima, Ohio	Northern	Inactive
Gamma Upsilon			Burlington, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Gamma Phi			Bronx, New York	Eastern	Inactive
Gamma Chi			San Jose, California	Western	Inactive
Gamma Psi			Charleston, South Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Gamma Omega			San Bernardino, California	Western	Active
Delta Alpha			Marshall, Texas	Southern	Inactive
Delta Beta			Albion, Michigan	Northern	Inactive
Delta Gamma			Belzoni, Mississippi	Southeastern	Active
Delta Epsilon			Las Vegas, Nevada	Western	Active
Delta Zeta			Baltimore, Maryland	Eastern	Inactive
Delta Eta			Tampa, Florida	Southeastern	Inactive
Delta Theta			Jackson, Mississippi	Southeastern	Inactive
Delta Iota			White Plains, New York	Eastern	Inactive
Delta Kappa			San Antonio, Texas	Southern	Active
Delta Lambda			Tehula, Mississippi	Southeastern	Inactive
Delta Mu			Fernandina Beach, Florida	Southeastern	Inactive
Delta Nu			Plano, Texas	Southern	Inactive
Delta Xi			Jackson, Michigan	Northern	Inactive
Delta Omicron			Nashville, Tennessee	Eastern	Inactive
Delta Pi			Winston-Salem, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Delta Rho			St. Petersburg, Florida	Southeastern	Inactive
Delta Sigma			Fayetteville, North Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Inactive
Delta Tau			Grand Blanc, Michigan	Northern	Active
Delta Upsilon			Tallahassee, Florida	Southeastern	Inactive
Delta Phi			Monroe, Louisiana	Southern	Inactive
Delta Chi			Southfield, Michigan	Northern	Inactive
Delta Psi			Georgia	Southeastern	Active
Delta Omega			Memphis, Tennessee	Mid-Eastern	Active
Epsilon Alpha			Northern Virginia	Eastern	Inactive
Epsilon Beta			Columbia and Lugoff, South Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Active
Epsilon Gamma			Central Carolina	Mid-Eastern	Active
Epsilon Delta			Palmdale, California	Western	Active
Epsilon Epsilon			Maryland	Eastern	Active
Epsilon Zeta			Maryland	Eastern	Active
Epsilon Eta			Pearland, Texas	Southern	Active
Epsilon Iota			Northern Virginia	Eastern	Active
Epsilon Theta			Starke, Florida	Southeastern	Inactive

Notable members

Honorary members

R. Louise Grooms, founder of the Detroit Institute of Commerce with her own money, to train African American youths with skills to enter the workplace. Member of Michigan Women's Hall of Fame