History Of Theta


          Kappa Alpha Theta was the first Greek letter Fraternity for women, established on January 27th, 1870 at Asbury University in Greencastle, Indiana. When it was founded, the word sorority did not exist, so Theta is a women's fraternity.

         The idea for Kappa Alpha Theta is credited to Elizabeth Locke. When asked to wear a man's fraternity badge as a supporting member only, she refused since she was not allowed to be a full member. Bettie Locke decided to form a fraternity of her own for women. The women also invited two more members, Bettie Tipton and Hannah Fitch, all four of whom are now known as the founding members of Kappa Alpha Theta. It took Bettie Locke (Hamilton), Alice Allen (Brant), Hannah Fitch (Shaw), and Bettie Tipton (Lindsey) three years to create Kappa Alpha Theta.

       These four women proudly wore their black and gold badges to Asbury's chapel service on March 14. The Alpha chapter at Asbury had 22 sisters. Soon, Theta spread to other colleges, and the establishment of the Beta chapter at Indiana University took place in May of the same year. 

       Kappa Alpha Theta began its expansion in May of 1870 when Bettie Locke installed the Beta Chapter at Indiana University. In 1877, Kappa Alpha Theta went international by installing the Sigma Chapter in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Today, Kappa Alpha Theta is 125 chapters strong, with over 150,000 members in both the United States and Canada.