One sorority on campus is proving that being small doesn’t mean they can’t out do larger sisterhoods.
The five members of Delta Sigma Theta sisters hold themselves to a very high standard. After closing in 2006, the sorority members returned in 2011 with 16 but their membership has been dwindling each year.
First Vice President Sydney Wharton said the chapter is small because Ball State is a predominantly white university and Delta Sigma Theta is a historically black sorority.
“We don’t have many people to choose from and we’re very selective, which is good, but it’s also kind of bad when you’re trying to get work done with only five people,” Wharton said.
The high standards do well for Delta Sigma Theta, having the highest GPA among the Divine Nine sororities — the nine historically African-American sororities and fraternities on campus.
Along with grades, the Delta Sigma Theta women place emphasis on philanthropy
Wharton said while the workload is hard, the bond she has with her sisters makes up for it.
“Before you get to the business part, you’re so close it’s like you would never let your sister get overwhelmed and do things by herself,” Wharton said. “We’re small, but we have a great bond with each other.”
Second Vice President Jourdyn Smith said because her chapter is so small, it is more intimate and she can really get to know her fellow sisters. In a larger chapter, sisters may not know everyone as well.
Wharton said one of the things she liked about her sorority was the uniqueness of it.
“It makes you feel special, and it makes me feel proud because all of our organizations were founded in a time when not too many black people were going to universities or even allowed in universities. And they certainly were not allowed into the preexisting sororities and fraternities. So, they had to create their own,” she said.
Last year, members of Delta Sigma Theta went to Washington, D.C. to reenact the suffrage march with other members of the sorority.
“This is the first movement and major event that we participated in since our sorority began. So [it] was pretty amazing to go to D.C. and see hundreds of thousands of Deltas march,” Smith said.
Smith said they always try to honor what their founders started.
“We wouldn’t be where we are today without that history,” Smith said.
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