Kappa Alpha Psi was founded on the campus of Indiana University
on January 5, 1911. The Fraternity's fundamental purpose
is achievement.
The story of Kappa Alpha Psi is to a large extent the
story of black students everywhere, whether organized or
not, who attended predominantly white colleges or universities
in America prior to World War II. The accomplishements
of these first Black students is all the more noteworthy
because typically they worked their way through college.
Their determination in the face of seemingly insurmountable
social and economic odds is the source of inspiration to
less than full priviledged students at white institutions
of higher learning throughout America. To understand this
is to understand the birth of college fraternities among
Blacks.
Black-sponsored Greek letter organizations on the Indiana
University campus might well have begun in 1903, but there
were too few registrants to assure the continuing organization.
In that year, a club was formed called Alpha Kappa Nu with
the purpose of strengthening the Black's voice at the University
and in the city of Bloomington. There is no record of any
similar organization at Indiana until the chartering of
Kappa Alpha Nu, a forerunner of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity,
Incorporated, in 1911. The ten Illustrious Founders gave
birth to a great concept, the idea that if we are going
to be brothers, let us be brothers on the best terms we
know. If we are going to bind ourselves together, let it
be around something that is strong enough to hold us; if
we are going to sing, let us sing about something that
will have a lasting refrain; if we drink a toast, let it
be of something beyond the trivial and the vulgar; let
us exalt the theme of achievement. Reliance would be placed
upon high Christian ideals and the purpose of honorable
achievement in every field of human endeavor. The Fraternity
would seek to raise the sights of young black youths and
stimulate them to accomplishments higher than might otherwise
be realized or even imagined.
Taken from "The Story of Kappa Alpha Psi"
Visit
the Official Fraternity Website for more history.
