History of Alpha Phi Alpha

Born out of a desire to promote close association and mutual support among  the small population of Afro-American males who were college students at the  turn of the century, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. has provided leadership  development and community service training to young men for 98 years. Thanks largely to its visionary founders and dedicated early leaders,  the Fraternity has become the most prestigious organization of its kind in  existence today.

FRATERNITY HISTORY

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.,  the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for Black college  students, was organized at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, in 1906. The  prejudices of the time, even at a relatively liberal institution such as  Cornell, placed an extra burden on minority students. The first unit of this  national fraternity, organized by college men of African descent, was called  "Alpha Chapter."

The seven visionary founders at Cornell, Henry Arthur Callis, Charles Henry Chapman, Eugene Kinckle Jones, George Biddle Kelley, Nathaniel Allison Murray, Robert Harold  Ogle and Vertner Woodson Tandy, labored in years of severe economic struggle and  racial conflict in the United States. Despite their difficulties of organization  in this untried field of student life, the early fraternity pioneers succeeded  in laying a firm foundation and remained steadfast in their goals - the  espousing of the principles of good character, sound scholarship, fellowship and  the uplifting of humanity (especially the struggling Black minority in  America).

The Fraternity has grown steadily in influence throughout the  years. 125,000 men have been initiated into Alpha Phi Alpha since its founding  in 1906. It has been interracial since 1945. There are now 350 college chapters  on campuses, and 350 alumni chapters in local communities, located in 44 states,  the District of Columbia, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia and Africa.