Delta Phi Omega Explained

Delta Phi Omega
Letters:Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: ΔΦΩ
Crest:Delta Phi Omega Crest.png
Alt:Delta Phi Omega Crest
Motto:“We Dreamt, We Saw, We Conquered”
Flower:White orchid
Birthplace:University of Houston
Affiliation:NAPA
Chapters:25
Colonies:26
Status:Active
Type:Cultural
Mascot:Bengal tiger
Colors: Red, Black, and Silver
Jewel:Red ruby, diamond
Philanthropy:Children’s education and literacy
Free Label:Purpose
Free:The purpose of Delta Phi Omega shall be to foster unity among South Asian women, build community awareness, and gain a greater understanding of oneself and others. The sorority aspires to instill leadership traits, excel in all academic endeavors, to encourage an active relationship between the sorority and its respective university, and shall do so with the utmost compassion, dignity, and fortitude.
Address:2020 Bailey Street
City:Houston
State:Texas
Zip Code:77006
Country:United States
Nickname:DPO
Scope:National
Emphasis:South Asian interest

Delta Phi Omega (commonly referred to as DPO, or Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: ΔΦΩ) is a nationally-based, South Asian-interest, multicultural sorority in the United States, with over 2,600 sisters in twenty-five chapters and twenty-six colonies across the nation. It is categorized as a social, service and philanthropy-based Greek letter organization whose main focus is to empower women and promote cultural awareness through involvement with their universities and communities. It has joined organizations such as the National APIDA Panhellenic Association (NAPA) to better convey its efforts to promote the greater good alongside other communities.[1] Delta Phi Omega Sorority, Inc. is the largest South Asian interest-based sorority in the nation.

Origin

On December 6, 1998, sixteen South Asian women formed Delta Phi Omega at the University of Houston. The sixteen Honorable National Founding Mothers are:Delta Phi Omega was envisioned as an organization that would focus on the diverse Indian culture through participation in various community and service projects, promote the advancement of South Asian women, and unite women in the South Asian community. Its pillars are sisterhood, honesty, loyalty, respect, and friendship.[2]

The sorority's annual national initiatives are "Be The Change" National Community Partner and Literacy Through Unity Week.[3] The annual Literacy Through Unity Week raises awareness of children’s education and literacy, along with fundraising at the respective universities and cities to support related charities. Events associated with Literacy Through Unity Week include community service projects, movie nights, books and panel discussions, fundraising nights, and Informationals by nonprofit organizations such as Asha for Education, Pratham, and CARE.

Organization

In 2001, sisters foresaw a rapid expansion of Delta Phi Omega and recognized the need for a central governing body. Therefore they founded the first National Council of Delta Phi Omega on February 1, 2002, which became the administrative entity of the sorority. The National Council ensures the continuity of the original purpose, mission, and ideals of the National Founding Mothers. Its functions also include handling matters of controversy, coordinating national-level programs, and overseeing chapter compliance with national policies. Each year at the national conference women are elected to the National Council, board, and regional director positions.[4]

After National Council the next tier is the National Board, which is made up of positions that are more geared towards expansion and maintaining the sorority on an organizational level, keeping records, and ensuring everything continues to run smoothly and professionally.

Following National Board are Regional Directors. Delta Phi Omega is currently divided into nine regions, with each region consisting of about four to nine schools. The final tier is an Alumna Advisor, which each charter has.

Chapters

These are the chapters and charters of Delta Phi Omega. Active chapters and charters are listed in bold; inactive chapters and charters are in italics.

ChapterChartered/RangeInstitutionLocationRegionStatusReference
AlphaUniversity of HoustonHouston, TexasGulf CoastActive[5]
BetaUniversity of Texas at San AntonioSan Antonio, TexasGulf CoastActive
Gamma Philadelphia Citywide Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaNortheastActive
DeltaDePaul UniversityChicago, IllinoisMidwestActive
EtaFlorida International UniversityMiami, FloridaFloridaActive
EpsilonUniversity of Texas at AustinAustin, TexasGulf CoastActive
ZetaUniversity of Maryland, College ParkCollege Park, MarylandMid AtlanticActive
ThetaUniversity of OklahomaNorman, OklahomaSoutheastActive
KappaVirginia Commonwealth UniversityRichmond, VirginiaMid AtlanticActive
IotaNortheastern UniversityBoston MassachusettsNortheastActive
Pace University charterPace UniversityPleasantville, New YorkNew EnglandActive
New York City, New York
SigmaUniversity of FloridaGainesville, FloridaFloridaActive
University of Texas at Arlington charterUniversity of Texas at ArlingtonArlington, TexasSouthwestActive
University of Washington charterUniversity of WashingtonSeattle, WashingtonPacificActive
Stony Brook University charterStony Brook UniversityStony Brook, New YorkNew EnglandActive
Penn State University charterPenn State UniversityUniversity Park, PennsylvaniaNortheastActive
University of North Texas charterUniversity of North TexasDenton, TexasSouthwestActive
Texas Women's University charterTexas Women's University
LambdaUniversity of South FloridaTampa, FloridaFloridaActive
MuUniversity of Illinois at ChicagoChicago, IllinoisMidwestActive
New Jersey Institute of Technology charterNew Jersey Institute of TechnologyNewark, New JerseyNorthwestActive
University of Maryland, Baltimore County charterUniversity of Maryland, Baltimore CountyBaltimore, MarylandMid AtlanticActive
University of California, San Diego charterUniversity of California, San DiegoSan Diego, CaliforniaPacificActive
NuOregon State UniversityCorvallis, OregonPacificActive
PiTexas A&M UniversityCollege Station, TexasGulf CoastActive
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill charterUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel Hill, North CarolinaMid AtlanticActive
Purdue University charterPurdue UniversityWest Lafayette, IndianaMidwestInactive
XiUniversity of TennesseeKnoxville, TennesseeSoutheastActive
OmicronUniversity of GeorgiaAthens, GeorgiaSoutheastActive
Indiana University at Bloomington charterIndiana University BloomingtonBloomington, IndianaMidwestActive
Boston University charterBoston UniversityBoston MassachusettsNew EnglandActive
Baylor University charterBaylor UniversityWaco, TexasGuld CoastActive
Emory University charterEmory UniversityAtlanta, GeorgiaSoutheastActive
University of California, Davis charterUniversity of California, DavisDavis, CaliforniaPacificActive
University of Rochester charterUniversity of RochesterRochester, New YorkNew EnglandActive
UpsilonRutgers University–New BrunswickNew Brunswick, New JerseyNortheastActive
RhoUniversity of Alabama at BirminghamBirmingham, AlabamaSoutheastActive
PhiWayne State UniversityDetroit, MichiganMidwestActive
University of Miami charterUniversity of MiamiCoral Gables, FloridaFloridaActive
Alpha AlphaUniversity of MinnesotaMinneapolis, MinnesotaMidwestActive
George Mason University charterGeorge Mason UniversityFairfax, VirginiaMid AtlanticActive
TauGeorgia State UniversityAtlanta, GeorgiaSoutheastActive
East Carolina University charterEast Carolina UniversityGreenville, North CarolinaMid AtlanticActive
PsiUniversity of Central FloridaOrlando, FloridaFloridaActive
Alpha GammaTexas Tech UniversityLubbock, TexasSoutheastActive
ChiRutgers University-NewarkNewark, New JerseyNortheastActive
Alpha BetaUniversity of Illinois Urbana-ChampaignUrbana, IllinoisMidwestActive
College of William & Mary charterCollege of William & MaryWilliamsburg, VirginiaMid AtlanticActive
Binghamton University charterBinghamton UniversityBinghamton, New YorkNortheastActive
University of Connecticut charterUniversity of ConnecticutStorrs, ConnecticutNew EnglandActive
University of South Carolina charterUniversity of South CarolinaColumbia, South CarolinaMid AtlanticActive
Ohio State University charterOhio State UniversityColumbus, OhioMidwestActive
Hofstra University charterHofstra UniversityHempstead, New YorkNortheastActive
Adelphi University charterAdelphi UniversityGarden City, New YorkNortheastActive
Saint Louis University charterSaint Louis UniversitySt. Louis, MissouriMidwestActive
City College of New York charterCity College of New YorkNew York City, New YorkNortheastActive
Syracuse University charterSyracuse UniversitySyracuse, New YorkNew EnglandActive

Notes

See also

Notes and References

  1. News: About - National APIDA Panhellenic Association. National APIDA Panhellenic Association. 2018-01-19. en-US.
  2. Web site: December 29, 2022 . Carroll Lurding . Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities (Baird's Manual Online Archive), section showing Delta Phi Omega chapters . January 25, 2023 . Student Life and Culture Archives . University of Illinois Archives . English . William Raimond Baird . University of Illinois. The main archive URL is The Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage.
  3. News: 2017-07-15 . Philanthropy . en-US . Delta Phi Omega . 2018-01-19.
  4. News: National Council and Board. 2017-07-15. Delta Phi Omega. 2018-01-19. en-US.
  5. Web site: November 2022 . Chapters . 2023-01-26 . Delta Phi Omega . en-US.