On Jan. 15, members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. (AKA) in the Virgin Islands will celebrate the organization’s 111th anniversary along with more than 290,000 of their fellow members around the world. In 1908, a group of young collegiate women gathered at Howard University to organize AKA, which is the oldest Greek-letter organization established by African-American college-educated women.
There are over 1,000 AKA chapters, four of which are in the U.S. Virgin Islands: Sigma Theta Omega Graduate Chapter in the St. Thomas-St. John District established in 1990; Rho Omicron Undergraduate Chapter at the University of the Virgin Islands, St. Thomas campus, in 1996; Mu Gamma Omega Graduate Chapter on St. Croix in 1978; and Rho Xi Undergraduate Chapter at the University of the Virgin Islands, St. Croix campus, 1996.
The V.I. chapters are a part of the International Region, which is comprised of all chapters outside of the continental United States, including South Africa, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Canada, Liberia, Bermuda, Bahamas and the United Arab Emirates.
On St. Thomas, members will dine together on Jan. 21 in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy. They will host a community breakfast at Emancipation Garden. All are welcomed. Together, members in the St. Thomas-St. John District will continue to work to provide “service to all mankind and make an impact in our community,” said President Lucille Parsons of St. John.