Delta Delta Delta at JMU

Tri Delta has over 170 chapters across the nation.
Tri Delta was the first women's fraternity to be founded as a national organization
with complete plans for governmental structure and expansion.
Tri Delta began regular publication of a quarterly magazine earlier in existence than
any other women's fraternity.
Tri Delta was the first to plan and perfect an alumni system.
Tri Delta provided a sound financial basis for the Fraternity by establishing
endowment funds in its early years.
Tri Delta was one of the seven organizations founding the National Panhellenic School.
Tri Delta pioneered in chapter visiting by appointing in 1905 an officer to visit all
chapters.
Tri Delta was the first to publish a book-length history:
A Detailed Record of Delta Delta Delta, 1888-1907.
Tri Delta was the first women's fraternity to hold a national Leadership Conference.
Tri Delta was the first to establish a central office (now called Executive Office).
Tri Delta was a leader in financing proper housing for collegiate chapters and has a
large investment in houses, lodges, and suites.
Tri Delta has been chosen to participate in campus expansion programs at many fine
institutions when they first opened NPC fraternities.
Tri Delta has concentrated its national philanthropic efforts on higher education
and has been praised by educators for these contributions through the Founder's
Anniversary Fellowships, the Zoe Gore Perrin Scholarships and the endowment of
the National Humanities Center.
Tri Delta led NPC organizations in the number of members listed in the first edition
of Who's Who of American Women, and many other members have been added in
subsequent editions.
Tri Delta was the first NPC group to adopt a central accounting system for its
collegiate chapters.

THE PURPOSE OF DELTA DELTA DELTA shall be to establish a perpetual bond of friendship among its members, to develop a stronger and more womanly character, to broaden the moral intellectual life, and to assist its members in every possible way.

IT SHALL ALSO BE THE PURPOSE OF DELTA DELTA DELTA to promote and develop mutually beneficial relationships between the Fraternity and colleges and universities where the Fraternity has established chapters, to develop qualities of unselfish leadership among its members, and to encourage them to assume, with integrity and devotion to moral and democratic principles, the highest responsibilities of college women.


Sarah Ida Shaw	Eleanor Dorcas Pond	Florence Isabelle Stewart	Isabel Morgan Breed

Although there were three women's groups represented at Boston University in 1888, Sarah Ida Shaw saw a need for a group which would be different from the others. She said to her friend, Eleanor Dorcas Pond, Let us found a society that shall be kind alike to all and think more of a girl's inner self and character than of her personal appearance. Not only did they found a fraternity, but at the same time they wrote the rituals and constitution, and designed the emblems. The choosing of the name was a joint decision. Eleanor suggested a triple letter and Sarah chose the letter and worked on the Greek mottos and passwords. Never before had a sorority been founded so completely and with such depth of meaning from the very beginning, and the actual day of founding was on Tuesday, November 27, 1888.

By the first anniversary of the founding of Delta Delta Delta, there were three chapters located in three different states; by the end of 1900 Tri Delta had 17 active chapters. Delta Delta Delta became international in 1930 with the installation of a chapter at the University of Toronto. We entered the 1990s with 131 active chapters.

The information on this page was taken from The Official Site of Delta Delta Delta (www.tridelta.org.)

This site is maintained by
Kristen Altobello.
This page was last updated on 06/15/03.