Delta Theta Tau

Delta Theta Tau (ΔΘΤ) is a North American service sorority that is community based and non-collegiate. It was founded on October 16, 1903, in Muncie, Indiana. Delta Theta Tau was the first non-sectarian sorority. Its members are only required to "believe in a higher power." The sorority has 72 chapters in the United States and over 50 alumnae chapters in the United States and Canada.

Delta Theta Tau
ΔΘΤ
Founded	October 16, 1903 (1903-10-16) Muncie, Indiana
Type	Service, non-collegiate
Affiliation	Independent
Status	Active
Emphasis	Christian
Scope	North America
Member badge
Colors	Olive Green and   White
Symbol	Vertical Diamond
Flower	White rose
Jewel	Diamond and Emerald
Publication	GRIT
Philanthropy	National Foundation for Ectodermal Dysplasia
Chapters	72
Members	180,000 lifetime
Nickname	Deltas, Delts, or Delta Theta
Headquarters	c/o Beth Wallis 500 S Colfax Martinsville, Indiana 46151-2309 United States
Website	deltathetatau.org

History

In the early 1900s, it was very common for Greek letter organizations to form in high schools. Many of the high school organizations did not extend past their immediate schools. Delta Theta Tau would become much more. The organization began as the Tyrolean Club. its founders were:

• Nora Spurgeon Charman
• Olive Spurgeon Gage
• Ethel Busch Lesh
• Betsy Gordon Gibert
• Charlene Prutzman Rector

At the home of Betsy Gordon on October 16, 1903, the group decided to change its name to Delta Theta Tau. That evening, Ethel Busch was chosen as the leader. They also selecte colors and drew up a constitution. The first pledges were Bess Staigers, Charline Knapp Murray, Anna Hilling, Della Ault, and Florence Jackson.

Initially, the organization was solely social but changed over time into a service sorority. The group's is now "dedicated to the advancement of philanthropy and charity, nonsectarian, nonacademic, promoting welfare for all and fostering the spirit of good fellowship."

The Beta chapter was installed on February 9, 1905, in Elwood, Indiana. Also in 1905, Winnie Hartley of Muncie, Indiana designed the badge, which has remained the same ever since. Nora Spurgeon Charman was the first of the founders to die and it was in her honor that the founders' names would be included in the sorority's ritual.

The first convention was held in 1906. In 1907 the third chapter was installed in Tipton, Indiana. By 1913, there were eleven active chapters.The sorority's newsletter, Grit, was first published in 1917. By 1920, Delta Theta Tau had eighteen chapters.

Today there are 72 active chapters and 53 alumnae chapters. There are 180,000 members who have been initiated into the sorority.

Symbols

The symbol of Delta Theta Tau is the diamond. The sorority's colors are olive green and white. Its flower is the white rose. Its jewels are diamond and emerald. Its motto is "Grit Wins", the motto of the founder's high school class.

Philanthropy

Delta Theta Tau Sorority is a service sorority that raises money through various efforts for many different charities. Over the last ten years, Delta Theta Tau has contributed time and money to the National Foundation for Ectodermal Dysplasias (NFED).

The Delta Theta Tau Golden Hand Fund is a non-profit entity within the organization that provides charitable contributions to various philanthropies. Delta Theta Tau is unique in that it has a separate fund that is used for members entering their golden years who experience financial difficulties. Delta Home provides anonymous assistance to members who apply.

Chapters

Following is an incomplete list of chapters, with active chapters indicated in bold and inacitve chapters in italics.

Chapter	Charter date and range	Location	Province	Status	References
Alpha	October 16, 1903	Muncie, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Beta	February 9, 1905	Elwood, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Zeta		Bloomington, Indiana	Theta	Active
Theta		Greencastle, Indiana	Alpha	Inactive
Lambda		Union City, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Xi		Portland, Indiana	Beta	Active
Sigma		Marion, Indiana	Beta	Active
Tau		Valparaiso, Indiana	Beta	Active
Phi		Lewisburg, Ohio	Gamma	Active
Alpha Delta		Huntington, Indiana	Beta	Active
Alpha Omicron		Terra Haute, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Alpha Rho		Chesterton, Indiana	Beta	Active
Alpha Omega		Brazil, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Beta Zeta		Warsaw, Indiana	Beta	Active
Beta Nu		Winchester, Indiana	Alpha	Inactive
Beta Xi		Lawrenceville, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Beta Sigma		Clinton, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Beta Omega		Denver, Colorado	Zeta	Inactive
Gamma Gamma		Washington, Indiana	Theta	Active
Gamma Xi		Bakersfield, California	Delta	Active
Gamma Pi		New Paris, Ohio	Gamma	Active
Gamma Upsilon		West Frankfort, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Delta Kappa		Anna, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Delta Xi		Alexandria, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Delta Chi		Monticello, Indiana	Beta	Active
Epsilon Lambda		Pinckneyville, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Epsilon Mu		Sullivan, Indiana	Theta	Active
Epsilon Rho		San Jose, California	Delta	Active
Epsilon Omega		Crawfordsville, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Zeta Alpha		Redkey, Indiana	Beta	Active
Zeta Zeta		Plymouth, Indiana	Beta	Active
Zeta Theta		Pana, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Zeta Lambda		Shelbyville, Indiana	Theta	Active
Zeta Upsilon		Seneca, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Zeta Chi		Dunkirk, Indiana	Beta	Active
Zeta Omega		Highland, Indiana	Beta	Active
Eta Alpha		Portland, Oregon	Eta	Inactive
Eta Beta		Odon, Indiana	Theta	Active
Eta Zeta		LaGrange, Indiana	Beta	Active
Eta Kappa		Brookville, Indiana	Theta	Active
Eta Lambda		Noblesville, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Eta Mu		Goshen, Indiana	Beta	Inactive
Theta Delta		Sparta, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Theta Iota		Delano, California	Delta	Active
Theta Kappa		South Whitley, Indiana	Beta	Active
Theta Lambda		Roachdale, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Theta Mu		Eaton, Ohio	Gamma	Active
Theta Nu		Albany, Indiana	Beta	Active
Theta Zeta		Seymour, Indiana	Theta	Active
Iota Mu		Lynn, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Iota Chi		Spencer, Indiana	Theta	Active
Kappa Mu		Carlisle, Indiana	Theta	Active
Kappa Xi		Brookville, Ohio	Gamma	Active
Kappa Omicron		Wood River, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Kappa Rho		New Carlile, Indiana	Beta	Active
Lambda Alpha		Tacoma, Washington	Eta	Active
Lambda Gamma		Wichita, Kansas	Zeta	Active
Lambda Epsilon		Plainfield, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Lambda Eta		Franklin, Indiana	Theta	Active
Lambda Theta		Martinsville, Indiana	Theta	Active
Lambda Nu		Mooresville, Indiana	Alpha	Active
Lambda Sigma		Phoenix, Arizona	Delta	Active
Mu Lambda		Stockton, California	Delta	Active
Nu Alpha		Oxford, Ohio	Gamma	Active
Nu Theta		Boonville, Indiana	Theta	Active
Nu Tau		Greenwood, Indiana	Theta	Active
Xi Epsilon		Yakima, Washington	Eta	Active
Xi Gamma		Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio	Gamma	Active
Xi Nu		Owensburg, Indiana	Theta	Inactive
Xi Phi		Marissa, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Xi Omega		Hurst, Texas	Zeta	Active
Omicron Alpha		Woodlawn, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Omicron Gamma		Escondido, California	Delta	Inactive
Omicron Delta		Fresno, California	Delta	Active
Omicron Omicron		Lodi, California	Delta	Inactive
Omicron Pi		Bethel, Missouri	Epsilon	Active
Omicron Psi		Red Bud, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Pi Alpha		New Athens, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Pi Beta		Mascoutah, Illinois	Epsilon	Active
Pi Gamma		St. Peters, Missouri	Epsilon	Active

Notable members

Honorary members

• Shirley Temple Black, actress
• Mary Pickford, actress

References

• Delta Theta Tau Philanthropic Sorority website
• McAllister, Teresa. Diamond Years of Delta Theta Tau. Delta Theta Tau, 1979.
• Grit Quarterly (publication of Delta Theta Tau)

External links

• Delta Theta Tau Official Webpage