Alpha Gamma Delta (), also known as Alpha Gam, is an international women's fraternity and social organization. It was founded in 1904 at Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York. It is the youngest member of the Syracuse Triad of North American social sororities that also includes Gamma Phi Beta (1874) and Alpha Phi (1872).

Since its founding, Alpha Gamma Delta has initiated over 201,000 members and installed 199 collegiate chapters and more than 250 alumnae groups in the United States and Canada. Its current philanthropic initiative is a fight against hunger, partnered with the nonprofit organizations Feeding America and Meals on Wheels. Alpha Gamma Delta is a member of the National Panhellenic Conference. Its international headquarters is located in Indianapolis, Indiana.

History

Founding

In 1904, efforts to introduce a new women's fraternity at Syracuse University began with eleven women and Dr. Wellesley Perry Coddington, a professor at the university who encouraged his students to form new fraternities and was instrumental in the early development of Alpha Gamma Delta. In May of that year, the founding women chose the fraternity's colors, motto, and badge.

Alpha Gamma Delta was officially founded on May 30, 1904, at Dr. Coddington's home with eleven founders, including Estelle Shepard Beswick, Emily Helen Butterfield, Georgia Otis Chipman, Georgia Alberta Dickover, Ethel Evelyn Brown Distin, Grace Mosher Harter, Edith MacConnell Hickok, Flora Knight Mayer, Jennie Titus Smith Morris, Mary Louise Snider, and Marguerite Shepard. At the founding, its constitution and bylaws were read and adopted and suggestions for a ritual were made. Titus was elected as the first president.

Unlike many other groups founded at the time, Alpha Gamma Delta was founded as a US-wide women's fraternity rather than a local fraternity or a literary or professional society, Many other Greek-letter organizations for women also refer to themselves as fraternities, although in the collective sense, they are generally called sororities. During World War I, the fraternity supported the American Red Cross and various war relief efforts. This service continued during World War II. These camps hosted more than 7,000 children and ran for 27 years.

In 1947, Alpha Gamma Delta's primary philanthropic activities shifted from volunteering with underprivileged children to sponsoring counselors for the National Society for Crippled Children and Adults. That year, the fraternity held its first International Convention outside the United States, in Banff, Alberta. By 1949, the fraternity had installed 60 chapters and had initiated 20,840 members.

Organizational and philanthropic changes

alt=Four young women pose holding both each other and an award for "Alpha Gamma Delta: Best Tree"|thumb|Members of Alpha Gamma Delta at a sorority formal in April 2012.

During and after the 1960s, the organization underwent restructuring, in which it created a separate branch to manage its philanthropic sponsorships and run programs for its members. A separate foundation, originally called the Founders Memorial Foundation, was established in 1962 to handle fundraising; it was later renamed the Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation. The fraternity partnered with Feeding America and Meals on Wheels in 2017 and now focuses its community service and fundraising initiatives towards fighting hunger. Its flowers are red and buff roses and green asparagus plusmosa ferns.

The sorority's publication is Alpha Gamma Delta Quarterly. Throughout the organization's history, it has sponsored charities and causes via grants, scholarships, and volunteer hours. Its current philanthropic initiative is a fight against hunger partnered with the nonprofit organizations Feeding America and Meals on Wheels.

Collegiate members have chapter meetings, philanthropy events, and chapter leadership opportunities. Collegiate and alumnae members participate in fundraising activities for the Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation and volunteer with and raise funds for food-based organizations in local communities, including Feeding America and Meals on Wheels. Chapters plan their local events, which include fundraisers and galas.

Chapters also plan social events such as formals and mixers with fraternities, host sisterhood activities, and reunions, and participate in charity-related events. As for academics, each chapter must maintain a 2.9 average GPA to remain in good standing with the national organization. The fraternity has scholastic recognition and programs for individuals who maintain a GPA above 3.14 and for chapters averaging from 3.14 to 3.5 and higher.

Alpha Gamma Delta created an annual internal celebration called International Reunion Day in 1936, as many of its collegiate chapters could not celebrate the organization's Founder's Day on May 30 due to university vacation closures or final exams held on that day. Collegiate and alumnae chapters were—and still are—encouraged to meet on the third Saturday of April instead.

Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation

Alpha Gamma Delta participates in philanthropy through donations made through a separate arm, the Alpha Gamma Delta Foundation. Created in 1962, the Foundation provides grants to organizations and individuals in the U.S. and Canada who are involved in fields related to certain causes. The Foundation currently and historically awards scholarships and grants, funds wellness programs, and provides leadership training and other courses. Due to NPC agreements, no woman who has been initiated into another NPC sorority may join another one, although no NPC member is restricted from joining a professional or service Greek letter organization.

Alumnae in good standing may join one of 250+ alumnae clubs in North America.

Governance

The fraternity's international headquarters is located in Indianapolis, Indiana. Alpha Gam also hosts an annual academy for collegiate officers and biannual academies for chapter officers and its volunteer service team.

Fraternity Housing Corporation

The Alpha Gamma Delta Fraternity Housing Corporation (FHC) is a 501(c)(7) organization formed in 2010 to provide student housing for the fraternity's undergraduate members. Currently, the FHC provides property management services to about 100 collegiate chapters and about 100 staff members in the headquarters office and local US chapters.

Chapters

thumb|Alpha Gamma Delta chapter house at the [[University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign]]

Since its founding, Alpha Gamma Delta has installed 199 collegiate chapters and more than 250 alumnae groups. These are grouped and named by geographical region.

In 2000, a member at the University of Georgia filed a discrimination complaint against her chapter, alleging that members denied a black classmate a membership offer due to her race. The chapter was temporarily suspended and received racial sensitivity training. After this incident, the university Interfraternity Conference created a diversity improvement program.

In 2013 and 2014, sorority women from multiple chapters at the University of Alabama – including Alpha Gamma Delta, Alpha Omicron Pi, Phi Mu, Kappa Delta, Pi Beta Phi, Delta Delta Delta, and Chi Omega – alleged that either active members or some alumnae had prevented them from offering membership to black candidates because of their race. Alpha Gamma Delta member Melanie Gotz stated that the entire collegiate chapter had "wanted this girl to be in Alpha Gam [but] were just powerless over the alums." An alum denied the allegations in the report, and the national headquarters issued a statement saying that the sorority "prohibits discrimination based on race in all of its activities including recruitment." Gotz and fellow students held a campus march to integrate campus Greek life, and following media and national outcry, the university held a second round of recruitment to offer membership to more women, including black women.