The National Pan-Hellenic Council, NPHC, was founded May 10, 1930, and has been nicknamed the Divine Nine, or D9, which is a collection of nine Black fraternities and sororities.

It was founded at Howard University in Washington D.C. and incorporated under laws in Illinois in 1937, according to sfl.osu.edu.

Among these fraternities and sororities include:

• Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.
• Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
• Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.
• Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
• Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
• Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.
• Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.
• Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.
• Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc.

These organizations allow Black people to be among like-minded individuals. Each of these organizations have their own type of main values and standards, but all share the common goal of educating and uplifting the Black community from racial inequities, according to yesprep.com.

The entire D9 was founded in the 20^th century by Black students who were from Historically Black Colleges and Universities, HBCUs.

A lot of members from these organizations were a part of social justice movements including the Civil Rights Movement and Black Lives Matters movement. One of the notable people that was a part of these organizations is Martin Luther King Jr.

King was a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and joined the fraternity during June 1952, at Boston University, according to kinginstitute.stanford.edu.

Another notable person that was a part of the D9 was Alicia Keys, a Grammys award winning singer-songwriter. She joined Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

Phylicia Rashad, an Emmy award winning actress, was also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

If students are interested in joining one of these organizations, they can attend informational meetings that the organizations may have.

After still wanting to join, they can go through the initiation process called on-line.

After some time of going through that process, which is supposed to be kept in secret, the organizations have events showing the person officially crossing and pledging the fraternity or sorority.

People that are not in sororities and fraternizes gather and view others being announced publicly that they are a part of the organization.

These organizations host numerous events throughout the school year in order to help the community.

It is also a way for organizations to make college a better experience for other people that attend the university.

Seven of the nine fraternities and sororities are present at Eastern and host events for people to come and enjoy.

The fraternities and sororities present at Eastern include:

• Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
• Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
• Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc.
• Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.
• Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.
• Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc.
• Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

They create flyers and posters that are posted on social media to advertise the events to others.

Being a part of organizations like these can be lifetime commitments and is celebrated by others for achieving this accomplishment.

Cam’ron Hardy can be reached at 581-2812 or at dennewsdesk@gmail.com.