In the black experience, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated has developed certain special characteristics, which distinguishes it from other organizations. Among these are the predominance of members initiated into graduate chapters and programs of social action and service related to the needs of the communities in which members are located. Alpha Kappa Alpha’s development has been influences not only by growth of its membership in size and maturity, but also by conditions in the culture in which the sorority exists. Program goals are continually and progressively reinterpreted so that the personal benefits that members derive from their affiliation are balanced and counter-balanced by the benefits that activities of the sorority chapters bring to the communities.
The aforementioned philosophy is the foundation on which the members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. in St. Thomas and St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands decided in 1989 to establish a new chapter to accommodate the increasing number of members in the district. In 1978, Mu Gamma Omega was established as the U.S. Virgin Islands chapter with members from St. Thomas, St. Croix and St. John. Through the hard work, dedication, and commitment of Dale Bastien, Dr. Virgie Binford, Laurel Hewitt-Sewer, Patricia Lake, Dr. Barbara LeBron, Lydia Simmonds-Lettsome, and Patricia Nathan, Sigma Theta Omega Chapter, located on St. Thomas and St. John was chartered on February 3, 1990. Under the leadership of Janet Jones Ballard, the National President and International Regional Director of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., at the time, a total of 30 professional women became charter members.
History of Sigma Theta Omega Chapter
Today, Sigma Theta Omega Chapter continues to build its program around the sorority’s mission “Service to All Mankind”. Its program and activities continue to reach all facets of the St. Thomas-St. John communities. Nationally, the Sorority targets programs in the areas of education, health, Black family, economics and the arts. In these areas, Sigma Theta Omega Chapter conducts many programs such as sponsorship of Emerging Young Leaders Program for girls in 6th – 8th, scholarships to graduating high school seniors, an annual Black History Month Observance and Virgin Islands Arts Festival, and an annual public Kwanzaa Celebration on St. John. These programs and other activities such as “Pink Goes Red” to raise awareness of Heart Disease in women, “Going Pink” to raise Breast Cancer awareness and support of Domestic Violence awareness, continue to characterize Sigma Theta Omega Chapter.
Sigma Theta Omega Chapter is aware of its responsibility to create a role by which other organizations can measure their own accomplishments. On May 26, 1996, Sigma Theta Omega Chapter continued the legacy set forth by its founders when they sponsored the chartering of Rho Omicron, the first undergraduate chapter of a Greek-letter organization at the University of the Virgin Islands, St. Thomas Campus.
The history of Sigma Theta Omega Chapter recalls the significant attainment that has consistently characterized Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. It will support a continuing awareness that the heritage of the past is of small worth unless its present nourishes the seeds from which will blossom finer achievements of tomorrow.