When the University of Nevada, Reno decided to add a fifth sorority to the Greek community for the fall of 2006, Sigma Kappa Sorority jumped at the opportunity. After much thought and deliberation between other sororities, the University selected Sigma Kappa. The women from the Sigma Kappa national organization started working right away. They began recruiting two weeks after the other Panhellenic sororities on campus – Delta Delta Delta, Delta Gamma, Kappa Alpha Theta, and Pi Beta Phi – concluded formal recruitment. Approximately 70 women pledged Sigma Kappa that fall.
Since we didn’t have a house at the time, we held meetings in classrooms on campus. The founding members worked hard, learning Sigma Kappa history, ideals, and basic knowledge on how to be sorority women. They learned the concepts of sisterhood, leadership, involvement and much more. Their knowledge and dedication to Sigma Kappa has continued and grown over the past three years, and has spread like wildfire to all the members that they have recruited.
A few things have changed since then.
Under the presidency of Sara Miller, Sigma Kappa won Best Sorority Collaboration and Most Outstanding Chapter President in 2007. Under the presidency of Megan Stanphill, in Fall 2009, Sigma Kappa won the Community Involvement Award and Most Outstanding Chapter President. Kate Gabor won the Greek Ambassador Award.
We no longer meet in classrooms for our weekly meetings. Currently, we are renting a house from Alpha Tau Omega alumni. They have given us a gift for which we are so grateful. The house is beautiful. We couldn’t ask for more! We are, however, in the process of finding a place we can call our own.
We have now graduated our very own Kappa Xi alumnae who have gone on to do everything from teaching first grade to working in the senator’s office in Washington, D.C. We are so proud of them!
We know there will be great things in store for our chapter in the future.
Without the hard work of the Sigma Kappa national volunteers, staff, and the founding class, the Kappa Xi chapter at the University of Nevada would not exist, nor would we be the unique and talented group of women we are today. We have exceeded expectations as a new sorority and will continue to grow as a chapter and as a member of the Greek community.
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Sigma Kappa History
Colby College in Waterville, Maine, was the first college in New England to admit women on an equal basis with men students. The first woman student was admitted in 1871, and for two years Mary Caffrey Low was the only woman student at Colby College. In 1873, four more young women from Maine, Elizabeth Gorham Hoag, Ida Fuller, Frances Mann, and Louise Helen Coburn were admitted to Colby and the five young women found themselves frequently together. During the school year of 1873-74, the five young women decided to form a literary and social society. They were told by the college administration that they needed to present a constitution and bylaws with a petition requesting permission to form Sigma Kappa Sorority. They began work during that year with an eager glow of enthusiasm. Their purpose at the outset was that the sorority should become what it is now, a national organization of college women. On November 9, 1874, the five young women received a letter from the faculty approving their petition. Thus, this date has since been considered our Founders’ Day.
In our first constitution, chapter membership was limited to 25. The original group was known as Alpha chapter and as our sorority grew, Beta chapter and Gamma chapter were also established at Colby College. Early records indicate that the groups met together; but in 1893, the Sigma Kappa members decided intramural expansion was not desirable. They voted to fill Alpha chapter to the limit of 25 and to initiate no more into Beta and Gamma chapters. Eventually, the second and third chapters would vanish from Colby campus. Finally Sigma Kappas realized if the organization was going to continue to grow, it had to expand beyond the walls of Colby College.
In 1904, Delta chapter was installed at Boston University. Elydia Foss of Alpha chapter had transferred to Boston and met a group of women who refused to join any of the other groups on campus. When asked if Sigma Kappa was a national organization, Elydia replied, “No, but it is founded on a national basis.” Elydia then took the necessary steps to make Sigma Kappa a national sorority and it was incorporated in the state of Maine on April 19, 1904. The new status as a national sorority made Sigma Kappa eligible to join what was then called the Interfraternity Conference, now known as the National Panhellenic Conference.
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