Sorority History

Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. was organized on November 12, 1922, in Indianapolis, Indiana, by seven young educators:

 

Mary Lou Allison Gardner Little

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Dorothy Hanley Whiteside

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Vivian White Marbury

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Nannie Mae Gahn Johnson

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Hattie Mae Annette Dulin Redford

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Bessie Mae Downey Rhoades Martin

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Cubena McClure

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The group became an incorporated national collegiate sorority on December 30, 1929, when a charter was granted to Alpha chapter at Butler University.

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From seven young educators, Sigma Gamma Rho has become an international service organization comprised of women from every profession. Sigma Gamma Rho offers its members opportunities to develop their unique talents through leadership training and involvement in sorority activities. Sorority activities provide an atmosphere where friendships and professional contacts are developed which lead to bonds that last a lifetime.

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Sigma Gamma Rho's commitment to service is expressed in its slogan, "Greater Service, Greater Progress." The sorority has a proud history of offering service wherever chapters exist, including Operation  BigBookBag, a program designed to address the needs, challenges and issues that face school-aged children who are educationally at-risk in local homeless shelters and extended care hospitals. The objective is for chapters to provide their local homeless shelters and children hospitals with educational materials, equipment and supplies. Other national projects include Wee Savers, Project Reassurance and Habitat for Humanity, through which Sigma Gamma Rho has built several homes across the United States in Florida, District of Columbia, Wisconsin, California, and Texas.