Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc. Celebrate 100 Years as an Organization

Founded in Indianapolis, Indiana, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc. was organized on Nov. 12, 1922. The organization was founded by seven young educators: Mary Lou Allison Gardner Little, Dorothy Hanley Whiteside, Vivian Irene White Marbury, Nannie Mae Gahn Johnson, Hattie Mae Annette Dulin Redford, Bessie Mae Downey Rhoades Martin, and Cubena McClure. The organization later became an incorporated national collegiate sorority on Dec. 30, 1929. The charter was granted to the Alpa chapter on the campus of Butler University. The KaptivatinG Kappa Gamma Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated was established on UT Martin campus on Oct. 6, 1986.

The organization continues to create a positive effect on the environments around them through sisterhood, leadership, and service. Tia Moore, a Senior who joined the organization during her freshman year, shares what each of these words means to her:

“Sisterhood to me means to be able [to] have someone who will support me in all of my endeavors and vice versa. It’s having the family I chose. Leadership is about being able to take initiative [to do] the hard things. It’s being willing to take the L so that someone in my organization may thrive. Community service is one of our biggest principles. Being able to give back to my community, if it’s volunteering at the boys and girls club or doing a campus-wide cleanup, nothing is too big or small. It’s all about being able to give back to those who poured into us.”

Sigma Gamma Rho shows this through affiliated groups that help women in different areas of their lives. Rhosebuds, Rhoer Club Affiliates, and Philos Affiliates help alumnae chapters with service projects and programs.

Rhosebuds is a group that focuses on girls aged eight to eleven and helps them become well-rounded citizens and students. Rhoer Club Affiliates are groups made up of teenage women who are focused on learning about leadership and their heritage. This group exists on a local, regional, and national level. Philos Affiliates are women that are not affiliated with greek organizations but are instead friends of Sigma Gamma Rho. These women are organized into auxiliaries who help raise money that goes towards the organization’s continuous goal to better their communities. This commitment to service can be explained through their slogan: “Greater Service, Greater Progress.”

While there is not a Rhosebud chapter in Martin, the advising chapter of Nu Sigma in Jackson houses their affiliates. Moore talks about how the younger affiliates are taught what it means to be a Sigma woman stating, “ We focus on education of the youth, and what better way to help educate than letting them get hands-on experience?”

Moore reflects fondly on her memories with her sisters but says that homecoming week in 2021 stands out the most to her. “[There was] the step show, stroll off, the comedy show, quad city and so much more! We spent basically every day together and it was like sister bonding each day. I learned something new and I’ll always love that.”

The KaptivatinG Kappa Gamma Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Incorporated took part in the centennial celebration this year with a week full of events including a bake sale and a probate in which they welcomed two new members on Friday, Nov. 11, 2022.