Question: Does anyone ever see the NPHC allowing inclusion of a 10th group?
 

I'm just curious what people think.

There are smaller, but national BGLOs that have been working to expand.

Does anyone ever see the NPHC allowing membership to a new group?

I imagine it would be an incredible undertaking...

Ask an Iota how long it took them to get in. Starang, where are you?

Re: Question: Does anyone ever see the NPHC allowing inclusion of a 10th group?
 

If I recall correctly, one of the requirements for membership in the NPHC is having 50 active chapters. Thus, it would definitely take a while. ;) That said, I think it will happen -- but not any time in the near future.

I thought one of the reasons why it took so long for Iota to become a member of NPHC was because the council didn't have a procedure for expansion prior to then. I could be wrong.

NPHC has a lot of requirements for expansion and I don't know of any organizations that currently meets all of them and would want to be a member of the council.

Yep, it wasn't until 1993 that the NPHC's consitution was amended to allow for expansion. And this happened because of the tenacity of the Iotas.

I was actually thinking about this the other day, not only the NPHC, but will the NPC allow another sorority full membership? Has anyone tried in recent history? What would be the requirements? What would happen if an org within the conference would fold as a national group...would one replace it?

ETA: better wording.

In order for another sorority to become a full member of the NPC, it needs to have 15 active chapters.

No, because there have already been NPC groups fold and no one replaced them. 26 groups isn't the "magic number" or anything.

I believe that it is more than 15 chapters. I thought it was more like 30 chapters at four year accredited institutions. I could easily be wrong, I couldn't find the info on the website. I know when AST joined the NPC we lost a number of chapters because our chapters were at teaching schools.

In 1972 Iota Alpha Pi quit the NPC rather than be merged or close. They are still around I believe.

http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...erger+sorority

That is the thread about NPC mergers and closures.

I imagine it would be hard to get in at this point in time.

I believe it's 13 active chapters for associate membership, and 15 for full membership.

I imagine Ceres is close wonder if they will petition...

Actually, Iota Alpha Pi completely disbanded. It was Kappa Beta Gamma that left the NPC.

I believe that the NPHC will admit more groups in the future. Their standards are very high, but that means that the groups they admit will be strong and competitive. i think It will be a while before any group is large enough to apply. The biggest non-NPHC BGLO I can think of is Gamma Phi Delta, and they have 13 undedgrad chapters and 58 grad chapters. Thats a long way to go before meeting the NPHC's requirements.

As far as the NPC, I think that while it may technically be possible to pursue membership with just 15 chapters, it would be foolish to actually do so. An organization that small would have real trouble competing with the more established organizations. They would have fewer members, fewer alumnae, and fewer financial resources. It would be a lot better for an sorority interested in NPC membership to remain independent until they had enough chapters to be similar in size to other NPC groups. That's becasue while independent, they can set their own expansion policies, and grow at a rate that is comfortable to them and the campuses that they are expanding to. Once they join the NPC, it will become a lot harder to expand, since they will have to follow the existing NPC expansion policies.

Yes, this is my understanding too.

I tend to agree with this. To petition for NPC membership, an org. has to have at least 13 collegiate chapters at accredited four-year institutions. The youngest chapter can be no less than two-years-old. That means that the org. would have to put off extension for several years. Not that that is a bad thing but it could hurt in the long term. There was a buzz about 10 years ago that a Latina sorority was considering joining but it never came to pass. Maybe they decided to join NALFO.

Re: Question: Does anyone ever see the NPHC allowing inclusion of a 10th group?
 

No.

Agreed

BACK ON TOPIC- NPHC
 

If said organization meets and exceeds the requirements and the member organizations see fit, I don't see why this would be a problem.

My personal concern is the copy cat orgs that spring up and say they have a different focus, when in fact they mimic NPHC practices, mottos, and principles.

I say do your thang...every lady cannot and should not be a Zeta. Just don't go running around talking about Finer Womanhood, Scholarship, Service and Sisterhood are your principles...TRY AGAIN!

More on this later...maybe

Isn't Gamma Phi Delta a professional sorority? I believe they have members who are also members of NPHC organizations.

Re: BACK ON TOPIC- NPHC
 

It seems that everyone wants to be a founder of something.

Perhaps I am reading their info page wrong, but it seems like they have a "business focus", much like how Farmhouse Fraternity and Triangle and Alpha Gamma Rho fraternities have focuses in Agriculture and Engineering.. http://www.gammaphideltasorority.com/ was what I was looking at...although there appears to be another Gamma Phi Delta, a christian focus fraternity as well http://www.gphid.org/

Untrue. I think we've discussed this on the board before, and the rule is that the 13th chapter has to be at least two years old -- NOT that the youngest chapter has to be. A chapter could petition if they had, say, a 16th chapter that was only a week old, as long as their 13th chapter was at least two years old.

A more interesting question would be whether or not a sorority like Ceres or Phi Sigma Rho (who currently are close to meeting the criteria, or DO meet it) would be interesting in competing with the NPC sororities when they have a special focus. Something like this works in the NIC because of their more relaxed governing rules, but I don't know if it would fly in the NPC or NPHC.

Sorry. My version of the Green Book is little older and that's how I interpreted it.

Re: Question: Does anyone ever see the NPHC allowing inclusion of a 10th group?
 

Short answer: Yes, if any meet the criteria.

I doubt that any more will be able to meet the criteria, which I feel are too strict in the first place. I don't think the other nine organizations will be weakened by offering the same guidelines for development and cooperation to smaller organizations.

I was thinking this very same topic a couple weeks ago while reading through a Baird's Manual. It also got me thinking to BGLO's that have closed. I couldn't really get a lot of info from the Manual about those organizations and whether there were mergers, etc.

Someone posted a very informative thread a while ago about the NPHC groups (was it you Senusret I) that said something along the lines of NPHC groups being deeply ingrained Afro-American culture.

I think for a new group to be able to

I heard it took Iota some 2 decades (please correct me if I am wrong) to be admitted. I guess if any group can stay

As for your post Finer Woman10-A-91 about copy cats, I can certainly see your concern, but if I were you I would not be that worried.

A cheap imitation of a sorority will never be nothing more then that. People will always see it for what its for.... ;)

I don't know about Ceres, but I can't imagine Phi Sigma Rho doing rush with the rest of the NPC, since you have to be an engineer/architect to rush. That would mean they would cut probably a large percentage of women from the beginning. Also, a lot of schools don't let freshmen into the college of engineering, which is why they tend to have a lot of upperclass rushees. I also don't think they would join, because one of their big "plugs" to potential members is that they are less time consuming than NPC organizations and that you have to have a college gpa of 2.0 to rush.

ETA: clarification

The NPHC constitution dictates that any group with an African American greek lettered focus can join them if they have been active for at least 25 years with an appropriate number of affiliate chapters.

Moreover, when I say greek lettered focus, I mean it is not for a "profession" in nature--such as only Biology Majors can join, etc. It has to be open to all people with a strong constitution.

It also must have a national and international office as well as conferences. And they must be willing to sign the agreements made between all the organizations for some of its activities--such as anti-hazing statutes, etc., a course for membership intake, accounting procedures, it main non-profit center or 501(c)3 status, etc. And the organization must be incorporated.

Moreover, like others NPHC affiliates stated that there must be at least 50% or more of its membership active at the collegiate and graduate levels.

There are also participations within the NPHC national and international conferences and conventions. And there are hefty dues that are required to be paid, yearly.

That is why it took the men of Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc. to become members of the NPHC.

While I'm not a member of Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc. nor the NPHC Historian, I thought that these measures weren't put into place until Iota sought membership. Prior to 1997 the last organization to join NPHC was Sigma Gamma Rho in 1937. And I'm not sure how the council dealt with expanision then because I seriously doubt all the organizations meant those requirements.

re: AKAMonet's post: But again, that was not added to the Constitution until 1993. So it was after the fact of the Iota's initial application.

The admittance of Iota was very acrimonious because of one particular NPHC member that was admantly against it. I really think it would be hard for a 10th group to be accepted.

I agree. I think they would be treated like a stepchild especially if it was an organization that was founded after Iota Phi Theta...

However, I think that newer organizations to need to establish a council of their own...maybe a national Black (or whatever name they choose) Greek Council? I know there is a national Multicultural Greek Council.

I am a little bit confused (please bear with me because I do not know much about NPHC). Are you suggesting that the newer BGLOs start a council that would be very similar to NPHC? I don't quite understand forming a new council that will do the same thing as the NPHC. I guess to me that would be like forming a second NPC, which I could see getting very confusing.

Maybe you can explain it better.

It doesn't have to be similiar to NPHC. I have found that a lot of these organizations are formed partly because the founders don't like the way things are done in NPHC. So they could come up with their own council that would address the needs they feel NPHC doesn't meet. A lot of universities have Black Greek Councils anyway so it could become a national organization.

Did it have anything to do w/ the fact that Iota got admittance to NIC first, or did the group opposing it just not want another group in NPHC?

The latter.

wow.

Wouldnt it Be Nice If All Greeks Expanded?

Granted, each Conference has Its Way of Looking at Expansion.

Literally?

Does That Need a retort?:(

It reads as It Says!

Just what Is your post?:) Oh, Just what does Your Post mean?

it took a long time...

:D