Chi Omega (, also known as ChiO) is a women's fraternity and a member of the National Panhellenic Conference, the umbrella organization of 26 women's fraternities.
Chi Omega has 181 active collegiate chapters and approximately 240 alumnae chapters. Since its founding in 1895 at the University of Arkansas, the sorority has initiated over 355,000 members with more than 28,000 undergraduates added each year, making it the largest women's sorority organization by membership. Chi Omega's national headquarters are located in Memphis, Tennessee.
History
Chi Omega was founded April 5, 1895, at the University of Arkansas by Ina May Boles, Jean Vincenheller, Jobelle Holcombe, and Alice Simonds, with the help of Dr. Charles Richardson, an initiate of the Kappa Sigma fraternity. This founding chapter is called the Psi chapter. It first expanded in Fall 1898 with Chi chapter at Transylvania University; located in Lexington, Kentucky, and Hellmuth Ladies' College, located in London, Ontario. Both chapters were transferred to other schools in 1903. By its 10th anniversary, in 1905, and with the support of Alumnae and Dr. Richardson, Chi Omega had installed 17 chapters throughout the United States.
Chi Omega joined the National Panhellenic Conference in 1903.
From 1947 to 1973, Chi Omega's headquarters were in the private home of two alumnae in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1973, Chi Omega moved to the 33rd floor of Carew Tower, the tallest building in Cincinnati. Chi Omega was the first women's Sorority to have an executive office in an office building. In 1986, the Chi Omega Executive Office was moved to the 31st floor of the same office building, Carew Tower, until their move to the present location in Memphis, Tennessee, in December 1993.
In the late 1990s, the leadership in Chi Omega researched opportunities for a partnership with a national philanthropy, choosing the Make-A-Wish Foundation as their official philanthropy since 2002. Since the start of this alliance, Chi Omega has raised more than 19 million dollars and has volunteered over one million hours for Make-A-Wish and contributed more than a million dollars annually.
Despite being a women's organization, Chi Omega only refers to itself as a women's fraternity instead of a sorority. As such, Chi Omega is the largest women's sorority organization in the world with over 355,000 initiates and 181 collegiate chapters. The 300,000th member was initiated in 2013.
Symbols
The white carnation is the official flower, while the skull and crossbones are the official symbol. The official colors are cardinal and straw. Chi Omega has two official jewels, the pearl and the diamond. The owl serves as the sorority's official mascot, symbolizing wisdom.
Chi Omega's crest was adopted in 1902. Centered on the crest is a white carnation, with the Greek letter Chi to the left and the Greek letter Omega to the right of the flower. Above these symbols are both the symbols of the skull and crossbones and the owl. Beneath the carnation are five Greek letters: Rho, Beta, Upsilon, Eta and Sigma. The symbol is surrounded by a laurel wreath.
The badge of Chi Omega was regulated and adopted in 1906. Dr. Charles Richardson designed the first badge, and made it completely out of scraps of hammered dental gold. The badge is a monogram of the Greek letter "Chi" superimposed over "Omega." It is only allowed to be adorned with fourteen pearls or diamonds, disallowing the use of any other stones. The badge is to be worn only when wearing professional clothing, above all other pins and over the heart. Both the badge and the crest may only be used or worn by initiated members.
Purposes
Chi Omega is an "intergenerational women’s organization" that states its founding purposes as: "friendship, personal integrity, service to others, academic excellence and intellectual pursuits, community and campus involvement and personal and career development". The ethos of the fraternity is embodied in a document known as the Chi Omega Symphony, composed in 1904 by Ethel Switzer Howard of the Xi Chapter at Northwestern University.
Membership
Organization and leadership
The fraternity's day-to-day business activities are overseen by the Governing Council; which consists of five elected alumnae, volunteer members, who are elected every two years. The current president of Chi Omega is Ann Bradshaw. Each chapter of Chi Omega receives at least an annual visit from a National Consultant who aids in the development of the members.