Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Collection

Collection Summary

Title: Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Collection
Call Number: MS 2016-09
Size: 9.5 linear feet (10 boxes and 1 OS folder)
Acquisition: Donated by Dr. Sharon Cranford of the Beta Kappa Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., 2015
Processed by: JZ, 3-2016
Restrictions: Box 10 is restricted.
Note: Digital collection, Alpha Kappa Alpha Collection

Literary Rights

Literary rights were not granted to Wichita State University. When permission is granted to examine the manuscripts, it is not an authorization to publish them. Manuscripts cannot be used for publication without regard for common law literary rights, copyright laws and the laws of libel. It is the responsibility of the researcher and his/her publisher, to obtain permission to publish. Scholars and students who eventually plan to have their work published are urged to make inquiry regarding overall restrictions on publication before initial research.

Content Note

This collection contains material primarily relating to the Beta Kappa Omega (BKΩ) Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA), the first Greek-lettered sorority founded by African-American women. Record types include meeting minutes, budget reports, magazines, photographs, notes, ephemera, audiovisual material, and artifacts. Bulk dates are from 1944-2015.

Historical Note

The Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority was established on January 15, 1908, at Howard University by nine students wishing to create an organization that would support the academic and personal goals of African-American women. In 1930 the Alpha Rho Chapter of AKA was established at the University of Wichita, but disbanded in 1938. In 1935 alumnae who had been a part of Alpha Rho founded a graduate chapter of AKA, BKΩ. In 1967 WSU students formed a second undergraduate chapter of AKA, Epsilon Alpha. This chapter and BKΩ have become known for their extensive community service and sponsorship of Fashionetta, an annual event during which African-American high school girls in their senior year compete for college scholarships by engaging in various academic and civic activities.

Detailed Description: Series Listing

Series 1 Box 1 FF 1-11 Administrative, Business, and Historical Records. This series mainly consists of meeting minutes and financial records relating to BKΩ's activities with respect to AKA and the Wichita community, 1944-mid 1980s. There are also notes on the histories of local chapters and early membership in BKΩ. Material is arranged chronologically.
Series 2 Box 1 FF 12-21, Box 3 FF 6 Fashionetta. This series contains material relating to the annual pageant of the same name; items include event guidelines, invitations, programs, news clippings, and correspondence, 1984-2013. Material is arranged chronologically.
Series 3 Box 1 FF 22-35, Box 2 FF 1-3, Box 3 FF 1-2, OS 1 Press Clippings, Publications, and Conference Material. This series consists of press items on AKA, numbers of the sorority newsletter Ivy Leaf, AKA conference programs, and BKΩ newsletters and histories, 1962-2015. Material is arranged by item type and then chronologically.
Series 4 Box 2 FF 4-8, Box 3 FF 3-7 Images. This series consists of loose photographs and reproductions of AKA/BKΩ members, as well as Fashionetta contestants, c. 1920-2010. Pictures of AKA/BKΩ members are arranged chronologically, followed by Fashionetta items.
Series 5 Box 2 FF 9-13 Audiovisual. This series consists of material mainly documenting Fashionetta pageants during the mid-1990s, along with a 2008 DVD celebrating the centennial of AKA, 1989-2010. Material is arranged chronologically.
Series 6 Box 2 FF 14-26, Box 3 FF 7, Box 4-Box 10 Artifacts. This series contains ephemera relating to AKA and BKΩ events and members, along with assorted handicrafts, writings, and record books by sorors, c. 1920-2015. Of note are the respective scrapbooks by Jo Brown and members BKΩ; these items provide an in-depth look at chapter life during the latter half of the 20th century.

Detailed Description: Box and Folder Listing

Series 1 ‒ Administrative, Business, and Historical Records

Box 1FF 1Meeting minutes for BKΩ, 1944-1954
Box 1FF 2Notebook containing BKΩ financial records and notes, 1949-1950
Box 1FF 3Meeting minutes for BKΩ, 1954-1972
Box 1FF 4Budget sheets for BKΩ, March-June 1952
Box 1FF 5Budget ledger for BKΩ, 1954-1971
Box 1FF 6Draft typescript of minutes for September 3, 1968 meeting of BKΩ
Box 1FF 7Financial reports for BKΩ, 1969-1970
Box 1FF 8Notebook on early BKΩ membership and finances for 1976-1977, c. 1976-1977
Box 1FF 9Budget worksheets and account statements for 54th Mid-Western Regional Conference of AKA, 1984
Box 1FF 10Notes on AKA chapters and members at WSU, c. 1970s-1980s
Box 1FF 11Receipts, 1954-1982

Series 2 ‒ Fashionetta

Box 3FF 6Reproduction of organizational chart for 1984 Fashionetta
Box 1FF 12Fashionetta committee meeting minutes and correspondence, 1984
Box 1FF 13Fashionetta guidelines, 1984-1986, 1988
Box 1FF 14Fashionetta invitations and programs, 1984-2008
Box 1FF 15Correspondence, song lyrics, and certificates, 1986-2008
Box 1FF 16Clippings on Fashionetta, 1992-2013
Box 1FF 17Fashionetta Fashion and Talent Workshop, 1998
Box 1FF 18Fashionetta 2005 Pearl Guidebook, 2005
Box 1FF 19Fashionetta 2010 program
Box 1FF 20Fashionetta 2011 program
Box 1FF 21Fashionetta 2012 program

Series 3 ‒ Press Clippings, Publications, and Conference Material

OS 1Kansas City Call article on BKΩ debutante ball in Wichita, 1962
Box 1FF 22Press clippings, 1983-2012
Box 3FF 1Wichita Eagle article on AKA clinic for children, 2000
Box 3FF 2Wichita Eagle article on AKA regional conference in Wichita, 2001
Box 1FF 23Ivy Leaf, May 1967 and Summer 1981
Box 1FF 24Ivy Leaf, Spring, Summer, and Fall/Winter 1985
Box 1FF 25Ivy Leaf, Spring and Winter 1986
Box 1FF 26Ivy Leaf, Spring, Summer, and Winter 1987
Box 1FF 27Ivy Leaf, Winter 1989 and Summer 1990
Box 1FF 28Ivy Leaf, Summer 1992 and Spring 1995
Box 1FF 29Ivy Leaf, Summer 2002 and Winter 2005
Box 1FF 30Ivy Leaf, Spring and Fall 2006
Box 1FF 31Ivy Leaf, Fall 2007, Fall 2008, and Spring 2009
Box 1FF 32Ivy Leaf, Spring 2012 and Spring 2013
Box 1FF 33BKΩ newsletters, 1981, 1984, 1999
Box 1FF 3454th Mid-Western Regional Conference of AKA, 1984
Box 1FF 3576th and 81st Mid-Western Regional Conferences of AKA, 2006 and 2011
Box 2FF 1Centennial Boule Agenda, 2008
Box 2FF 2"A Shining Example of Timeless Service," 2014
Box 2FF 3Program for 80th anniversary of BKΩ chapter, 2015

Series 4 ‒ Images

Box 2FF 4Beta Omega Chapter members of AKA in Kansas City, Missouri, c. 1920. Alpha Rho chapter members of AKA, c. 1934. Mary Ellen (Lewis) Cary, 1941, mid-1940s, mid-1980s.
Box 2FF 5Jo Brown at Regional Conference in Kansas City, 1951. AKA/ BKΩ members, 1950s. BKΩ sorors and initiates, late 1950s. Carol Parks Hahn, co-leader of Dockum Drug Store sit-in, c. 1960s. BKΩ members at 1st debutante ball and at "La Parisienne" gala, 1962. BKΩ members and officers, 1964. Epsilon Alpha chapter members, 1967.
Box 2FF 6Ella Fitzgerald with BKΩ members, 1985
Box 2FF 7AKA and BKΩ members, 1990s. AKA receiving Jubilee Citation Award from Urban League of Wichita, 1995. AKA and BKΩ members, 2000-2008. Local BKΩ members at AKA Centennial Boule, 2008. AKA and BKΩ members, 2010- .
Box 3FF 3Jo Brown, c. 2000
Box 3FF 4Fashionetta committee members, mid-1980s.
Box 2FF 8Fashionetta, 1984-2008
Box 3FF 5Fashionetta Pearls, 1991

Series 5 ‒ Audiovisual

Box 2FF 9VHS, "Ivy Presentation," 1989
Box 2FF 10VHS, "Fashionetta '94, Parts 1-3" (2 videotapes), 1994
Box 2FF 11VHS, "Fashionetta '95, Parts 1-4" (2 videotapes), 1995
Box 2FF 12VHS, "Fashionetta '97, Parts 1-3 [2 videotapes]," 1997
Box 2FF 13CD, "Mid-Western Shines," 1999; DVD, Alpha Kappa Alpha: Sisterhood and Service, 2009; DVD, Fashionetta 2010, 2010

Series 6 ‒ Artifacts and Ephemera

Box 2FF 14Edna Anderson's certificate of membership into the Beta Omega chapter of AKA at the University of Kansas, c.1920
Box 2FF 15 Reproduction of 1935 BKΩ charter
Box 2FF 16Writings of Edna Anderson Lewis, c. 1940, c. 1960s, n.d.
Box 2FF 17Program for play, Home, by Samm-Art Williams, 1982
Box 2FF 18Invitations and programs to BKΩ and Alpha Epsilon functions, 1982-2015
Box 2FF 19Founders' Day invitations and programs, 1984-2015
Box 2FF 20Autographed program for Ella Fitzgerald concert in Wichita, 1985
Box 2FF 21Guest book for BKΩ meetings, 1989-1991
Box 2FF 22Certificates of appreciation to BKΩ, 1994-2015
Box 2FF 23Other, 1995-2015
Box 2FF 24BKΩ scrapbook (part 1 of 2), 1999
Box 2FF 25BKΩ scrapbook (part 2 of 2), 1999
Box 2FF 26Proclamation by Wichita Mayor Jeff Longwell honoring BKΩ, 2015. Certificate of thanks from the House of Representatives, State of Kansas, to BKΩ, 2015
Box 3FF 7 Presentation material on the history of BKΩ in honor of donation to WSU, 2015
Box 4Undergraduate Songfest Award from AKA to Epsilon Alpha Chapter, 1983
Box 4Jubilee Citation Award from Urban League of Wichita to AKA, 1995
Box 5AKA crest, n.d.
OS 2AKA crest (laminated print), n.d.
Box 5Notepad holder and BKΩ stationery, n.d.
Box 5AKA button, n.d.
Box 5Bookmark commemorating 66th Boule, 1984
Box 5Rush sachets, 1989
Box 52014 EAF Awards Luncheon program, 2014
Box 6Scrapbook of Josephine "Jo" Pace Brown, 1948-1990
Box 7Quilt, c. 1990
Box 8Pillow, c. 1984
Box 9AKA centennial doll, 2008
Box 9AKA paddle, n.d.
Box 10Restricted