The Sorority was founded on January 13, 1913 by 22 energetic women on the campus of Howard University. These women wanted to use their collective strength to promote academic excellence and to provide assistance to the needy. The first public act performed by the Founders involved their participation in the Women’s Suffrage March in Washington, D.C., March 1913. Since it’s establishment, Delta Sigma Theta has clearly demonstrated itself as a public service organization that strives to confront the problems of all people. On the national level, there is an extensive array of public services offered through our Five Point Programmatic Thrust. To name a few, Summit V: Health and Healing-Let it Begin Within, in which the Sorority addresses clinical depression among African-American women and the Dr. Betty Shabazz Delta Academy: Preparing Young Ladies for the 21st Century, where individual chapters establish programs for at-risk African-American girls between the ages of 11 and 14. Other initiatives under the Five Point Thrust include:

Economic Advisory Committee – This committee is continuously recording and disseminating information to chapters in reference to support for Black businesses, seminars on procurement and entrepreneurship, and information on business financing and management.

The Distinguished Professor Endowed Chair - An endowment that provides support for Black colleges and universities through a grant for a professor of distinction for a two-year period.

Social Action Commission - The National Social Action Commission monitors legislation at the federal, state, and local levels. The commission provides educational information to the membership through legislative alerts, mass mailings, and public and social policy projects, as well as, civil-rights related activities.

Thika Memorial Hospital, Nairobi, Kenya – Recently renamed Mary Sick of the Mission Hospital, this hospital wing named for Delta Sigma Theta Sorority provides pre-natal care and training for mothers and infants. Monetary contributions from Delta allowed the services to be continued to the present time.

Some of the notable women that are members of this illustrious sisterhood include, Shirley Chisholm, Caroll Moseley Braun, Cicely Tyson, Lena Horne, Nikki Giovanni, Winnie Mandela, Judith Jamison, Stephanie Tubbs-Jones, and the list continues. Delta’s participation in national and international events has given the Sorority a legacy that stands as a tribute to its 22 Founders.