Beta Phi Alpha (ΒΦΑ) was a national collegiate sorority operating under that name in the United States from 1919 until 1941. It was absorbed by Delta Zeta sorority.
The group had a succession of names. Founded on the campus of the University of California, BerkeleyonMay 8, 1909, Beta Phi Alpha began as Bid-A-Wee, a group created to meet the needs of a "very difficult housing situation" (Miner, p. 144).[1] Through future name changes, the graternity continued to count its Founders Day as 8 May 1909. The Founders were:
In 1912, the name changed to Aldebaran, after the star. This change, and an expanded symbolism, mark the point where interest began among members for expansion to other campus groups.[2]
On 24 Nov, 1919, the group chose to rename themselves as a Greek letter organization with the name Kappa Phi Alpha (University of California Chronicle, p. 38). But within a year, discovering that a men's fraternity in Boston had been operating under those letters, in 1920, the sorority took on its final name, Beta Phi Alpha. The 1919 date appears to be the juncture where the group, now solidly interested in connecting with other campus organizations, began to establish structures that would aid such growth. This process was led by Mary Gordon Holway, who wrote the ritual and advocated for a Greek letter identity.[2][3]
Beta Phi Alpha then began the process of nationalization and expansion. In 1923, it was granted membership in the National Panhellenic Conference. Expansion was often effected by the absorption of local chapters or restless chapters of struggling non-NPC sororities. One of these was a five-year old local at the University of Minnesota called Zeta Alpha that became the Kappa chapter of Beta Phi Alpha in 1927.[4] A total of thirty-five chapters were installed by 1936, but only a portion of them survived due to the economic downturn of the Great Depression. For example, in 1936, two of the six chapters of a small national sorority called Phi Delta affiliated with Beta Phi Alpha, creating chapters at New York University and George Washington University.[5] But it appears these did not survive, as five years later they were not reflected in the final chapter list at the time of merger with Delta Zeta.[3]
On 22 June 1941, Beta Phi Alpha joined in a friendly merger with Delta Zeta sorority (Miner, pp. 144– 145). ΔΖ gained eight undergraduate chapters from the merger.[2][3]
Beta Phi Alpha's Convention Lights is still sung at the close of Delta Zeta national conventions.[1]
The gavel which opens Delta Zeta's convention is an artifact of Beta Phi Alpha. It was given to Beta Phi Alpha by Founder Elsa Ludeke. The gavel is inscribed with the names of both sororities' founders and national presidents (Miner, pp. 144– 145).
The Final Benedictory (~blessing) was given by Julia Wells Bower at the last Beta Phi Alpha convention in 1941:
"Sisters in Beta Phi Alpha, we have long traveled a star-lit road together. We have given loving service, have formed priceless friendships, and have learned true wisdom as we traveled that road. Now the warm glow of a brightly burning Lamp joins the soft radiance of our star to light our path. May we be worthy bearers of the Lamp as we are faithful followers of the star!" (Miner, p. 144)
We believe in service, the keynote of our daily lives, the foundation of our Fraternity and its power to reveal the worth of woman. We believe in knowledge and its broadening influence, in understanding and unselfish love as the creators of our happiness.
We pray for grace to meet success with humility, for strength and courage to rise above failure with spirit renewed, for wisdom to judge man by the spiritual values he may possess. We strive to keep faith in ourselves. We believe in the brotherhood of man and in our kinship to God, our Creator. (Miner, p. 145)
Delta Zeta's history book (1983) described the insignia as follows: Its badge "was a pearled Φ with Greek letters Β and Α embossed on a field of black enamel at either side of the Φ's stem". Its colors were Kelly green and gold. Its flower was the yellow tea rose.The fraternity's open motto was "Scientia, Virtus, Amicitia" or "Knowledge, Virtue, Friendship" Its publication was Aldebaran.[6]
Baird's Manual (1940) notes that more than thirty chapters had been established "with a total membership of 3,295." Active chapters at the time of the merger are noted in bold, inactive chapters at the time of merger are listed in italics. Delta Zeta's history (1983) notes that a total of eight new chapters were gained in the merger, with other groups combined and one released.[3]
^This chapter was absorbed into the Mu chapterofΔΖ.
^This chapter originated as Delta Nu (local) in 1922. It ceased operations approximately four years prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Zeta Tau Omega (local) in 1922. At the merger, it became the Beta Sigma chapterofΔΖ.
^This chapter ceased operations approximately three years prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Alpha Rho (local) in 1922. It ceased operations approximately four years prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Epsilon Alpha Phi (local) in 1919. It ceased operations approximately eight years prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Theta Gamma Phi (local) in 1920. At the merger, it was absorbed by the Omicron chapterofΔΖ, which had been installed on the campus in 1916.
^This chapter originated as Delta Epsilon Phi (local) in 1922. At the merger, it reestablished the dormant Alpha Kappa chapterofΔΖ, which had been installed on the campus in 1924 but had closed by 1937.
^This chapter originated as Epsilon Alpha Phi (local) in 1924. It ceased operations approximately eight years prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Zeta Alpha (local) in 1924. It ceased operations approximately two years prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Chi Zeta (local) in 1924. At the merger, it was absorbed by the Alpha Chi chapterofΔΖ, which had been installed on the campus in 1922.
^This chapter originated as Phi Sigma Delta (local) in 1925. It ceased operations prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Gamma Phi Delta (local) in 1917. It ceased operations prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Lambda Pi Omega (local) in 1921. It ceased operations prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Alpha Epsilon (local) in 1907. At the merger, it became the Beta Tau chapterofΔΖ.
^This chapter originated as Alpha Theta (local) in 1919. It ceased operations prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Delta Omega (local) in 1920. At the merger, it was absorbed by the Chi chapterofΔΖ, which had been installed on the campus in 1919.
^This chapter originated as Lambda Sigma (local) in 1921. It ceased operations prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Alpha Pi Epsilon (local) in 1918. At the merger, it became the Beta Upsilon chapterofΔΖ.
^This chapter originated as Kappa Tau Alpha (local) in 1925. Upsilon chapterofΒΦΑ was released at the time of the merger, as Miami University already was home to Delta Zeta's founding chapter. Later that same year this chapter became Beta Tau chapterofAlpha Chi Omega.
^This chapter originated as the Themis Club (local) in 1921. It ceased operations prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Phi Kappa Eta (local) in 1926. At the merger, it became the Beta Phi chapterofΔΖ.
^This chapter originated as Chi Gamma (local), forming in 1928. It was installed as ΒΦΑ's Psi chapter on 6 March 1931, but closed just prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Chi Delta Omega (local) in 1923. At the merger, it became the Beta Chi chapterofΔΖ.
^This chapter originated as Gamma Tau (local) in 1929. It ceased operations prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Phi Gamma Sigma (local) in 1922. At the merger, it was absorbed by the Alpha Zeta chapterofΔΖ, which had been installed on the campus also in 1922.
^This chapter originated as Chi Delta (local) in 1927. It ceased operations prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Zeta Iota (local) in 1927. It ceased operations prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Kappa Alpha Alpha (local) in 1927. It ceased operations prior to the ΔΖ merger.
^This chapter originated as Iota Lambda Phi (local) in 1923. At the merger, it became the Beta Psi chapterofΔΖ.
^This chapter originated as Alpha Kappa Alpha (local) in 1929. At the merger, it was absorbed by the Beta Nu chapterofΔΖ, which had been installed on the campus in 1939.
^Kappa chapter became dormant at Minnesota in 1940, just prior to the national merger with Delta Zeta which was also present at Minnesota at that time with their Gamma chapter. Members and alumnae of Beta Phi Alpha would have been welcomed as part of the merger. That campus also hosted a chapter of Phi Omega Pi (originally Achoth) that similarly had failed four years prior to their merger with Delta Zeta in 1946.
^Anson, Jack L.; Marchenasi, Robert F., eds. (1991) [1879]. Baird's Manual of American Fraternities (20th ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Baird's Manual Foundation, Inc. p. VIII-30. ISBN978-0963715906. Baird's Manual is also available online, here: The Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage.
^Predecessor groups were clubs; the sorority began operations as a sorority in 1919.
^See Fran Becque's Womens Fraternity blog for more information on the Syracuse chapter, where she says, "Delta Zeta, founded in 1924, had been a local society (at Syracuse, called) Lambda Delta Sigma, founded the previous year. The Alpha Kappa chapter of Delta Zeta became inactive in 1937. In 1923, a local group, Delta Epsilon Phi was founded. It became a chapter of Beta Phi Alpha in 1925. When Beta Alpha Phi amalgamated with Delta Zeta in 1941, the former became a chapter of Delta Zeta and took the Alpha Kappa chapter designation. The ΔΖ chapter closed in 1957. Accessed 29 Aug 2020.
^This chapter had formerly been the Zeta chapter of the small, non-NPC national of Phi Delta which it joined in 1927. However its roots were as a local sorority called Alpha Sigma Theta that formed earlier in 1927.
^This chapter had formerly been a part of the small, non-NPC national of Phi Delta. Prior to that, its roots were as a local sorority called Sigma Epsilon that formed in 1919, which became one of two founding chapters of Phi Delta. With the later merger the chapter became the Beta Omega chapterofΔΖ in 1941.
