Sigma Psi Zeta
ΣΨΖ
FoundedMarch 23, 1994 (1994-03-23)
University at Albany
TypeCultural interest
AffiliationNAPA
EmphasisAsian-American
ScopeNational
Motto"Lead from the front."
ColorsRed and Gold    
FlowerYellow Rose with Baby's Breath
PhilanthropyCombatting violence against women
Chapters43
NicknameSYZ, Sigmas
Headquarters11241 Green Watch Way
North Potomac, Maryland 20878
U.S.
Websitewww.sigmapsizeta.org

Sigma Psi Zeta (ΣΨΖ) Sorority, Inc., also known as Sigmas or SYZ, is a progressive multicultural American sorority. It was founded on March 23, 1994, at the University at Albany and incorporated in New York on March 15, 1996. It is the third-largest Asian-interest sorority in the nation. It is a part of the National APIDA Panhellenic Association (NAPA).

History

Plans for the Sigma Psi Zeta sorority were formed in the fall semester of 1993 at SUNY Albany by a group of female undergraduates from different backgrounds. The sorority was formed in part to address the dual difficulties faced by Asian women. Its founding mothers were Gina Han, Sally Hsieh, Jean Kim, Jenny Kim, Sandra Lam, Winnie Liu, Yan-Chieh Liu, Michelle Macaraig, Sung-Yon Noh, and Loan Trang.

On March 23, 1994, the sorority was officially recognized by the university. Within a year, a second chapter was formed at SUNY University at Binghamton.[1][2] The sorority was incorporated in New York on March 15, 1996.

Internally, the sorority uses the term "womxn" instead of "woman" or "women". Similarly, it uses "sxsters" or "syzters" in place of "sisters". Similar terminology has been adopted by other multicultural organizations.

Symbols

The sorority's colors are red and gold and its flower is a yellow rose with baby's breath. Its motto is "Lead from the front."[1]

Activities

Sigma Psi Zeta is a cultural, social, educational, and community service–oriented Greek organization. Its philanthropic focus is to combat violence against women in its various forms. Sigma Psi Zeta is an official partner of the White House initiative, It's On Us, which launched as a result of the ARC3 Survey.

Since 1999, Sigma Psi Zeta's philanthropy has been to combat violence against women. The sorority has worked against violence against women in many forms and has focused specifically on Asian women who are historically objectified and disempowered. Local chapters and colonies participate in events such as the Take Back The Night rallies and the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence's Domestic Violence Awareness month.[3]

Membership

Sigma Psi Zeta has 43 active chapters in the states/commonwealths of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, Washington D.C., and Wisconsin.

Chapters

Following are the chapters of Sigma Psi Zeta.[2][4] The sorority differentiates between three levels of organization at its campus units. Chapter status appears to be the ultimate goal. Newer or emerging groups are called charters. The third type is denoted as Interest Groups; an interest group must have permission to form from campus administration and must include at least ten members.[5]

Active groups are listed here in bold, inactive groups are listed in italics.[2]

Chapter Symbol Chartered/Range Institution Location Status Reference
Alpha Α March 23, 1994 University at Albany, SUNY Albany, NY Active
Beta charter Β January 4, 1995 – xxxx ?, 20xx ? Binghamton University Binghamton, NY Active
Gamma Γ January 18, 1997 – 20xx ? Saint John's University Jamaica, NY Inactive
Delta Δ October 3, 1998 University at Buffalo Buffalo, NY Active
Epsilon Ε October 10, 1998 – 20xx ? SUNY Oenonta Oneonta, NY Inactive
Zeta Ζ November 7, 1998 – 20xx ? Pace University New York, NY Inactive
Eta Η May 20, 2000 Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY Active
Theta charter Θ November 18, 2000 – 20xx ?; 202x ? University of Massachusetts Amhers Amherst, MA Active [6][lower-alpha 1]
Iota Ι December 1, 2000 University of Rochester Rochester, NY Active
Kappa charter Κ January 7, 2001 – 20xx ?; 20xx? Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA Active
Lambda Λ December 1, 2001 University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA Active
Mu Μ June 2, 2002 – 201x ? SUNY Geneseo Geneseo, NY Inactive
Nu Ν July 17, 2002 Drexel University Philadelphia, PA Active
Xi Ξ January 3, 2003 University of Nebraska–Lincoln Lincoln, NE Active
Omicron Ο June 12, 2004 – 202x ? Stanford University Stanford, CA Inactive
Pi Π November 15, 2003 George Washington University Washington, D.C. Active
Rho Ρ November 22, 2003 University of Washington Seattle, WA Active
Tau Τ December 6, 2003 University of Maryland, College Park College Park, MD Active
Upsilon Υ April 18, 2004 University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA Active
Phi Φ April 24, 2004 University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO Active
Chi Χ April 4, 2006 – 201x ? Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania Shippensburg, PA Inactive
Alpha Alpha ΑΑ April 8, 2007 – 201x ? Yale University New Haven, CT Inactive
Alpha Beta ΑΒ May 10, 2008 Northwestern University Evanston, IL Active
Alpha Gamma charter ΑΓ April 9, 2011 Villanova University Villanova, PA Active
Alpha Delta ΑΔ April 1, 2012 Rutgers University New Brunswick, NJ Active
Alpha Epsilon ΑΕ April 7, 2012 University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign Champaign, IL Active
Alpha Zeta charter ΑΖ April 21, 2013 University of the Sciences Philadelphia, PA Active
Alpha Eta ΑΗ November 16, 2013 – 20xx ? New York City New York City Inactive
Alpha Theta ΑΘ November 16, 2013 Wichita State University Wichita, KS Active
Alpha Iota ΑΙ October 25, 2014 University of California, Berkeley Berkeley, CA Active
Alpha Kappa charter ΑΚ November 8, 2014 University of Minnesota Minneapolis, MN Active
Alpha Lambda ΑΛ November 8, 2015 Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY Active
Alpha Mu ΑΜ March 26, 2016 University of Kansas Lawrence, KS Active
Alpha Nu ΑΝ November 12, 2017 George Mason University Fairfax, VA Active
Alpha Xi charter ΑΞ March 24, 2018 Syracuse University Syracuse, NY Active [lower-alpha 2]
Alpha Omicron charter ΑΟ April 8, 2018 Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN Active
Alpha Pi charter ΑΠ March 10, 2019 University of Wisconsin–Madison Madison, WI Active
Alpha Rho charter ΑΡ April 20, 2019 Stevens Institute of Technology Hoboken, NJ Active
Alpha Tau charter ΑΤ April 12, 2020 New York University New York City, NY Acive
Alpha Upsilon charter ΑΥ March 21, 2021 Northeastern University Boston, MA Active
Alpha Phi charter ΑΦ April 23, 2021 Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, MI Active
Alpha Chi charter ΑΧ November 17, 2021 Washington State University Pullman, WA Active
Alpha Psi charter ΑΨ November 18, 2021 Temple University hiladelphia, PA Active

Notes

  1. ↑ This chapter was reformed as a charter.
  2. ↑ Chapter was founded as a colony in 2016.

References

  1. 1 2 "Our Story". Sigma Psi Zeta. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Lurding, Carroll and Becque, Fran. (December 2022) Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities. Urbana: University of Illinois. Accessed January 2, 202.
  3. ↑ "Philanthropy Background". Sigma Psi Zeta. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  4. ↑ "Locations". Sigma Psi Zeta. Retrieved 2023-01-03.
  5. ↑ "Expansion". Sigma Psi Zeta. Retrieved 2023-01-03.
  6. ↑ "Announcements - Theta Charter". Sigma Psi Zeta. Retrieved 2023-01-03.
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