Welcome to Kappa Alpha Theta:
A Booklet for Parents, Families, & Support Systems
Theta Beginnings
Kappa Alpha Theta’s rich history began in 1870, just five years after the Civil War ended in the United States. It was in 1837 that the Methodist church established Indiana Asbury (now DePauw University) in Greencastle, IN. In 1867, Indiana Asbury officially opened its doors to women, but not without great uproar from the male students.
The first women students at Indiana Asbury were looking for ways to make friends and find support and encouragement for their academic pursuits. They were insulted by their teachers, taunted by their classmates, and ignored by their childhood friends who did the “right” thing and attended conservatories for girls. It took these brave pioneers three years to found Kappa Alpha Theta.
In 1870, four pioneering women—Bettie Locke Hamilton, Alice Allen Brant, Bettie Tipton Lindsey, and Hannah Fitch Shaw—brought the vision of Kappa Alpha Theta to life.
There were societies for women before 1867, and some of these had secret rituals with badges, passwords, mottos, and other symbols. But in 1870, Theta became the first women’s Greek-letter fraternity to be established because its primary founder, Bettie Locke, wanted full membership in a male fraternity. When the men asked her to wear their fraternity badge as a “mascot,” she responded, “If you won’t initiate me into your fraternity, I’ll start my own.”
Bettie and her three forward-thinking friends thought that the close friendship of women with similar scholastic goals and personal values would ultimately encourage and attract more young women to coeducational colleges in the future. Thus, Kappa Alpha Theta was established on Jan. 27, 1870, at what is known today as DePauw University.
Kappa Alpha Theta is an international organization with college chapters in both the United States and Canada, and with members around the world.
Our Mission:
Kappa Alpha Theta nurtures each member throughout her lifetime, offering opportunities for intellectual and personal growth.
Our Vision:
Leading every member to personal excellence through lifelong sisterhood.
Our Values:
Scholarship, service, leadership, personal excellence, and friendship/sisterhood.
Our Aims:
The intellectual aim of the Fraternity is the attainment of highest scholarship. The social aim of the Fraternity is to exercise the widest influence for good. The moral aim of the Fraternity is the standard of love.
Our Motto: Perseverance, Independence, Faith
Our Greek Letters: KAΘ
Important Dates:
Jan. 27 is Founders Day; Oct. 19 is International Day of Service.
Our Badge: Kite-shaped pin Our Symbol: The kite
Our Colors: Black and gold
Our Flower: The black and gold pansy
Our Philanthropic Priorities:
The National Court Appointed Special Advocates/Guardians ad Litem (CASA/GAL) Association for Children, Kappa Alpha Theta Foundation, The Friendship Fund
Number of active college chapters (as of July 2025):
139 college chapters
Number of alumnae groups (as of July 2025):
152 alumnae chapters, 43 alumnae circles
Benefits of Membership
Membership in Kappa Alpha Theta can benefit your collegian’s experience in many ways!
Your Theta will have the opportunity to build relationships with other members—both collegians and alumnae—throughout the world and network with members in a chosen field or area of interest. In ThetaConnect, our members-only platform, members can find a mentor and join mentoring programs that can guide them in their job searches and careers.
Kappa Alpha Theta offers several educational programs, leadership training initiatives, and officer transition resources to help members grow as leaders. Learn more about Theta’s leadership programs for undergraduates on the Theta website.
Each Theta chapter hosts service opportunities and fundraising events so members can give back to their local communities and to Theta’s philanthropic priorities. The Theta for Good Program is Kappa Alpha Theta’s college chapter giving program that provides chapters the opportunity to support local nonprofits while also supporting Theta Foundation. Through Theta for Good, chapters can also help support National CASA/GAL, a local chapter of CASA/GAL, or organizations that support children who have experienced abuse or neglect or otherwise support the health and welfare of children. Since the launch of Theta for Good in 2022, Theta’s college chapters have raised nearly $3 million, with over $2 million of those funds being granted to organizations like National CASA/GAL and local CASA chapters.
Because Theta membership is for a lifetime, the Theta journey doesn’t end at graduation. Kappa Alpha Theta can help make the transition from college to the “real world.” Theta offers a broad spectrum of opportunities for Thetas entering the job market for the first time, from a comprehensive membership directory to networking in alumnae groups to ThetaConnect. Thetas can support each other by providing career information, advice, and referrals to other Thetas and their contacts.
How We Care for Your Theta
Health and Safety
Kappa Alpha Theta is committed to promoting a safe and healthy college experience on a chapter and individual basis, including comprehensive education, support, and resources focusing on the risks of alcohol and other drug misuse. To support and advise chapters on risk prevention best practices, Kappa Alpha Theta utilizes a risk prevention committee made up of risk prevention specialists who work closely with college chapters to answer risk-related questions and communicate openly with college chapter officers and advisors. Learn more about health and wellbeing resources on the Theta website
Mental Health
As an organization, Theta’s goals include creating a safe environment for members to discuss mental health issues. We encourage members to recognize when someone might benefit from mental health support and supporting members facing mental health challenges and conditions. Learn more about mental health resources on the Theta website.
Academics
As one of our aims being the attainment of highest scholarship, Kappa Alpha Theta seeks members with intellectual curiosity that extends leadership potential.
The chapter’s bylaws include member and officer GPA requirements set by the chapter’s members. Members who fall below the chapter’s GPA requirement are asked to make an academic development plan for improvement, which could include chapter study groups, a study buddy, and other academic support. The chapter’s academic development director and advisor support them throughout the process, with regular check-ins throughout the semester.
The chapter is also supported by the Fraternity’s academic development committee that encourages chapters to reach their full scholastic potential and considers learning that takes place both in and outside of the classroom.
Position Statements
Kappa Alpha Theta has statements on topics directly impacting the experiences of our members. The Fraternity expects all members and chapters to act in accordance with them. You can read them on the Position Statements page on the Theta website.
Hazing Statement
As an organization built on sisterhood, Kappa Alpha Theta has a no-tolerance hazing policy. New members are made aware of the definition of hazing at their first new member meeting and all members agree to hazing-related expectations upon initiation. Kappa Alpha Theta repudiates the actions of its members who believe hazing activities to be acceptable by holding the chapter and individual(s) accountable for their actions. Kappa Alpha Theta prioritizes the elimination of hazing within our college chapters and aims to serve as an advocate for anti-hazing efforts within campus communities.
The Fraternity Bylaws state, “[H]azing or mock initiation of any kind is forbidden. Hazing is defined as subjecting a person to an activity which endangers or is likely to endanger the health or safety of a member or which tends to humiliate, embarrass, or cause personal discomfort regardless of one’s willingness to participate in such activity.”
What the New Member Experience Looks Like
Bid Day
The day when new members receive their invitations to join Theta is bid day. Chapters host an initial meeting soon thereafter to provide new members with a welcome and important dates.
Soon after bid day, each new member is provided with an initiated chapter member, referred to as a big or a Theta mentor, to offer guidance and support throughout the new member period.
Member Orientation
Member orientation is a four-to-six-week introductory program designed to help new members make a successful transition into Kappa Alpha Theta. During orientation, new members can expect to learn the values of Kappa Alpha Theta, responsibilities of membership, and resources and tools to assist them in their Theta experience. Weekly online modules include the following:
• Initial Meeting introduces new members to the expectations of Theta’s member orientation period, including member resources, programming, and discussion of Theta’s stance against hazing.
• Theta Beginnings reflects on chapter and organizational history, including Theta’s mission, values, and the role of women in higher education from the past, present, and future.
• Intellectual Curiosity involves learning about scholastic requirements, support opportunities, and the concept of being a lifelong learner, with a focus on personal balance and wellness.
• Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion and Widest Influence for Good discusses the importance of identity and equity across differences to promote positive social change.
• Leadership Potential explores Theta’s leadership philosophy and provides support to engage with chapter, campus, and community leadership opportunities and development.
• Ritual Reflection enables new members to engage in conversation about the meaning of Theta’s ritual and make connections to the lifelong nature of membership in Theta.
Ritual Services
As part of the new member experience, your Theta will participate in several ritual services, including Pledge Service, Loyalty Service, and initiation. Initiated members, including alumnae, are welcome to participate at the discretion of the local chapter.
Member Expectations
As a Fraternity, Thetas are expected to hold themselves to a standard of social, intellectual, and moral excellence. At any time, members can access Theta’s governing documents, policies, and contact information for officers and their adult advisors through Theta Portal. If expectations of membership are not met, a member may engage with Theta’s accountability processes. These processes occur with the support of local advisors and/or Fraternity volunteers and prioritize the growth and development of involved members.
General responsibilities of membership include the following:
• Member dues: Each member’s financial responsibilities (dues) are paid each academic term and cover an individual portion of the chapter’s operating budget, which is set by local chapter officers and advisors. Dues can range in amount from campus to campus, but are used for chapter facility operations, social and sisterhood events, scholastic programming, and recruitment costs. Your Theta has been informed of the billing schedule and payment amounts and will receive all financial communication through BillHighway (formally changing to re:Members in summer 2026). If you would like to be copied on your Theta’s statements, your Theta will need to add a guardian email to the related account.
Member Privacy
The engagement of family members in your Theta’s member experience is warmly welcomed.
While your support makes a large impact, your Theta’s growth, development, and membership is just that: Your Theta’s. As outlined in our Member Privacy Statement, any membership- and chapter-related information is provided solely to individual members directly.
Member Privacy Statement
Theta values the involvement of parents, families, and support systems of our members. However, our members’ right to privacy is of the utmost importance. Information about, but not limited to, membership status, discipline issues, finances, and housing is provided solely to individual members. Members may choose not to share information with their parents or family members, and we respect their choice and privacy.
There are lots of ways you can stay engaged as your Theta journeys through the membership
Ask about new member retreats, new friends, and what was learned about Theta this
Learn about your Theta’s big, or another member of the chapter, who has provided support through the new member period.
Invite your Theta to share about chapter activities such as service projects and leadership
, so you can find gifts for your special Theta—and for yourself!
Attend chapter events for families, such as a family or parent weekend.
Housing
Kappa Alpha Theta has two models of housing management.
In the first model, the Fraternity Housing Corporation (FHC) manages the facility. The FHC exists to provide and maintain safe, competitive, and desirable homes to enhance the sisterhood of college members; foster affinity of alumnae; and support the health, heritage, and future of our college chapters. Many members can live in a chapter house, and more than 100 of them are owned by the FHC.
Another housing model is a facility corporation board (FCB), which is comprised of local alumnae who manage the facility. FHC supports the FCB by providing resources to ensure it has the right tools to be successful.
Living in a Theta chapter facility can play an important role in your Theta’s overall mental health. According to 2024 research conducted by the Foundation for Fraternal Excellence (FFE), sorority women who live in a chapter facility have lower loneliness, depression, and eating disorder ratings compared to those who live out.
Learn more about Theta housing on the Theta website
Eta Lambda/~
Theta Foundation
Created for Thetas by Thetas, Kappa Alpha Theta Foundation serves as a pillar of support for individual members, chapters, and the Fraternity at large. For more than 65 years, Theta Foundation has worked to link members with resources to help them reach their fullest potential and make a difference in the world. Theta Foundation scholarships, along with educational, leadership, and service-learning grants, provide Thetas with financial support, enabling these women to achieve their personal and professional dreams.
Theta Foundation awards more than $2 million annually in support of individual Thetas, chapters, and the Fraternity at large.
dollar amount of scholarships awarded to members. Theta Foundation awards more than $1 million in scholarships each year. Each scholarship is a minimum of $1,000, and four outstanding undergraduate members are selected annually to receive a Founders Memorial Scholarship valued at $12,000 each.
Grants
Theta Foundation supports the non-degree educational and leadership endeavors of individual members and chapters through our grants program. In 2024, more than $57,000 was approved for Thetas’ experiential learning endeavors such as presenting research at conferences, studying abroad, participating in internships, and making a tangible impact through service endeavors. Theta Foundation grants aim to further member growth leaders on their campuses, in their communities, and around the world.
Learn more about Theta Foundation on the Theta website.
Shop for Your Theta Contact Us
Browse our selection of apparel (from brands like Lululemon and The North Face), accessories, and home goods, offered by more than 600 licensed vendors at Kite & Co.
Visit our Shop page on the Theta website.
Kappa Alpha Theta Headquarters 8740 Founders Rd. Indianapolis, IN 46268
800-876-1870
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www.kappaalphatheta.org
Please email families@kappaalphatheta.org with questions, or visit our Parents, Families, & Support Systems web page dedicated to supporting parents, family members, and support systems of Thetas.