The Alpha Delta Pi Foundation will award five grants of $5,000 each to Ronald McDonald House Charities chapters to support renovation and growth in Amarillo, Texas; Denver, Colorado; Hawaii; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania & Morgantown, West Virginia; and Southwestern Ontario, Canada.

ALPHA DELTA PI FOUNDATION AWARDS $25,000 IN GRANTS TO LOCAL
RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE CHARITIES CHAPTERS

The Alpha Delta Pi Foundation will award five grants of $5,000 each to Ronald McDonald House Charities chapters to support renovation and growth in Amarillo, Texas; Denver, Colorado; Hawaii; Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania & Morgantown, West Virginia; and Southwestern Ontario, Canada.

ATLANTA (October 30, 2020) – In recognition of the 41st anniversary of our partnership with Ronald McDonald House Charities, the Alpha Delta Pi Foundation is thrilled to announce grants to five chapters of Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) from the Foundation’s RMHC Endowment.

Grants of $5,000 each will be awarded to:
• RMHC of Amarillo – in support of the “Keeping Families Close” Capital Campaign to build a new house in their current location in the Texas Panhandle
• RMHC of Denver – to help rehabilitate the Starlight Room, a play area for young children and families
• RMHC of Hawaii – to provide interior furnishings for the Distant Learning Space & Computer Center to support the needs of family members in residence
• RMHC of Pittsburgh & Morgantown – in support of the Ronald McDonald Care Mobile which provides immunizations, screening for food insecurity, and referrals to additional resources in the Greater Pittsburgh area
• RMHC of Southwestern Ontario – to help introduce the At Your Service! Meal program with new food service options to meet required safety protocols necessary during the COVID-19 pandemic
View our video announcement here.

This is the 2nd year of RMHC Endowment grants from the Alpha Delta Pi Foundation. In 2019, five inaugural grants totaling $25,000 were made to expand the partnership between Alpha Delta Pi and RMHC by providing resources for local RMHCs even if they do not have an Alpha Delta Pi collegiate chapter or alumnae association nearby.

The RMHC Endowment was created as part of the Foundation’s landmark $10,000,000 We Believe Campaign in 2015. Collegiate chapters, alumnae, parents, and friends of Alpha Delta Pi have helped raise more than $768,000 to expand the reach of our philanthropic partnership with RMHC through this fund.

“Alpha Delta Pi remains committed to help with Keeping Families Close,” said Tracy L. Garner, President, Alpha Delta Pi Foundation.

“Our members raise more than a million dollars each year for RMHC, as well
as volunteer countless hours, provide in-kind support through local wish list and pop tab drives, and even fundraise through the annual Bank of America Chicago Marathon. We are proud to support the mission of RMHC and the difference they make in the lives of families facing medical crises.”

About Alpha Delta Pi Founded at Wesleyan Female College in Macon, Ga., on May 15, 1851, Alpha Delta Pi was the first secret society established for college women. Its principles of scholarship, leadership, sisterhood and service guide more than 265,000 women in 159 active collegiate chapters and 155 alumnae associations of Alpha Delta Pi. The Alpha Delta Pi Foundation, a non-profit organization, offers funding for scholarship, grants, educa6onal programming, and leadership training.

Grand Council Names Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion as a Top Priority for the Sorority
Download PDF

Last week, Alpha Delta Pi shared our commitment to creating a diverse and inclusive sisterhood that celebrates the identities of our lived experiences. We made a commitment to stand with and hear our Black members as they navigate the pain and harm caused by a longstanding history of racism and injustice. We also recognize our responsibility to acknowledge our contributions to the racist and oppressive systems still in existence today. We are long overdue in taking responsibility to be better for all of our members, especially Black, Indigenous, and people of color, and other marginalized identity groups. We want to ensure we are truly embodying our motto, We Live For Each Other, in our words and actions. For it is only in doing so that we can be better as a partner on campuses and within communities.

On June 2, 2020, Grand Council shared the sorority’s 2020 Strategic Plan for the biennium with the International Officers and Staff who will be responsible for executing it. Developed over the course of the last few months, this new plan prioritizes Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and identifies inclusivity as one of the core values of our organization. 

Strategies for this prioritization include:  

• Ensuring a multi-level and multi-faceted approach in addressing the needs of all organization members and integrating inclusive practices into Alpha Delta Pi.
• Understanding the sorority experience through the lens of identity using assessment and evaluation.
• Completing an education, resource, and policy audit to address shifting campus and chapter demographics.
• Researching informed programs, policy, and operations to maintain standard of excellence.
• Enhancing diversity, equity, and inclusion resources for members.
• Determining appropriate preventative practices and restorative response process to ensure inclusive sisterhood.
• Consistently reviewing methods to ensure relevancy to student and host institution expectations.

These steps are only a starting point into our efforts to be actively anti-racist and fulfill our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. They are the beginning of a multi-year plan developed by the Diversity and Inclusion Committee with the support of Sorority leadership.  

An impactful campaign for change within our organization cannot be developed or delivered in a week. We have provided a space for members to engage in this conversation through our Talk About It Tuesdays webinar series, which provides the opportunity for listening, learning, and sharing on topics of inclusion. The upcoming issue of The Adelphean includes content around this topic. More details will be forthcoming in member and stakeholder communications.

We hear the demand for action from our sisters. We agree and commit to addressing them with the direction of the outstanding professionals on our Diversity and Inclusion Committee. Change takes time and we appreciate your continued accountability to move our Sorority and one another forward. While the organization has significant work to do as we unlearn and dismantle internally oppressive systems, we ask our members to commit to the following call to action: 

• Educate yourself. Participate in the Talk About It Tuesdays webinar series, including our upcoming webinar on deconstructing implicit bias. Read, view, and listen to some of the recommended resources shared by the Diversity and Inclusion Committee.  
• Invite others into the conversation with grace. Each individual comes into this discussion at a different place in their learning journey and holding each other accountable to do better is key to growth and change. 
• Be an active bystander. Address acts of racism and oppression. Actively engage your sisters, family, friends, fraternity, and sorority communities in conversations about the need to educate and advocate against racism and oppression. 
• Don’t tokenize others. Be careful not to lean on our sisters of color, especially our Black sisters to educate you about these topics. There is emotional labor in their being the ones to educate while also managing their feelings – it is not their job to educate the whole.  
• Advocate for and amplify the voices of those oppressed. This will look different depending upon our stage of life. It could involve peacefully protesting in support of addressing these issues, holding our sisters, including Sorority leadership, accountable for change, speaking up to ensure there is representation at the decision-making tables of your chapter, campus, or workplace, or inquiring about the diversity and inclusion strategic plan for your campus or workplace. 

Many sisters have found themselves compelled to financially support one or many non-profit organizations or special fundraisers that offer resources and education to the Black Lives Matter movement and community organizations around the country. As an international organization, Alpha Delta Pi has not endorsed any particular giving outlet, as there are many that are worthy of receipt. Instead we encourage our members to research options in their communities and throughout the country to find a fund that resonates with them. Whether it be a non-profit dedicated to helping Black women start small businesses, a private fund to help the families of victims, or a large national movement, we are confident that our sisters will give as they are able in order to fulfill our commitment to unselfish service to mankind. 

The Diversity & Inclusion Committee continues to examine and evaluate Alpha Delta Pi’s efforts to create a more inclusive sisterhood. We want to ensure the voices of all our members are accurately represented at the table, especially those who have often felt silenced by our Sorority’s past practices. If you have further insights, questions, or suggestions, please email inclusion@alphadeltapi.com.

2020 Ruth Pretty Palmer Panhellenic Award Collegiate Recipients

The Ruth Pretty Palmer Panhellenic Award was established in 1996 to honor individual collegiate and alumnae members for leadership and exceptional service to college and alumnae Panhellenics. This award is named in memory of Ruth Pretty Palmer, Sigma—Illinois, who served on the Alpha Delta Pi National Panhellenic Conference Delegation for sixteen years.

The Ruth Pretty Palmer Panhellenic Award is given annually to individual members who are involved with their local Panhellenic and have displayed outstanding leadership in their local Panhellenic, Greek Council, or regional Greek Conference.

• Michelle Ashby, Eta Pi – Virginia Tech
• Claire Canestrino, Theta Tau - Penn
• Madalyn Cleer, Epsilon Zeta – Texas State
• Faith Fallon, Zeta Omicron – Georgia Tech
• Madison Lockrem, Kappa – Samford
• Katelyn Neely, Alpha Iota – Pittsburgh
• Genevieve Pritchard, Alpha Theta – Washington
• Josephine Sandoval, Alpha Epsilon – Nebraska

2020 Emerging Leader Award Recipients

The Collegiate Emerging Leader Award is presented annually to members who demonstrate a commitment to leadership in Alpha Delta Pi, on her campus, and in her community. This award honors the spirit of our young, innovative founders who had the foresight and propensity to create our beloved sorority.

The award is presented to sisters who are a first- or second-year member and have shown great leadership ability or potential. They must have earned a minimum 3.14 cumulative college GPA and have a recommendation from a chapter officer, advisor, or campus professional demonstrating how the member lives our Creed and has impacted her chapter.

• Allison Ball, Alpha Iota – Pittsburgh
• Blythe Best, Theta Epsilon – Methodist
• Emily Brown, Gamma Phi – East Tennessee
• Danielle Burton, Epsilon Pi – Georgia Southern
• Brynn Carlson, Alpha Eta – Kansas State
• Addison Cottone, Beta Epsilon – South Carolina
• Maya Dalton, Eta Upsilon – Wake Forest
• Chelsea Dunleavy, Zeta Pi – San Diego
• Virginia Felton, Theta Epsilon – Methodist
• Morgan Fritz, Pi – Iowa State
• Laura Goines, Eta Gamma – Austin Peay
• Desiree Green, Zeta Zeta – Augusta
• Hope Heilmann, Theta Xi – Central Oklahoma
• Kyra Higgins, Theta Nu – Christopher Newport
• Katherine Hodges, Theta Nu – Christopher Newport
• Casey Keller, Eta Epsilon – Miami, Ohio
• Delaney Lloyd, Gamma Iota – Florida
• Crosby Loftin, Beta Omega – Auburn
• Phoebe Love, Epsilon Rho – UNLV
• Natalie Morris, Theta Beta – Coastal Carolina
• Kylie Noe, Delta Nu – Southeast Missouri
• Haley Marie Palmer, Epsilon Eta – Mississippi State
• Caitlin Personale, Gamma Rho – Arizona State
• Camille Pon, Iota Gamma – UC, Davis
• Meghana Sharma, Beta Psi – Kentucky
• Meghan Spears, Upsilon – Washington State
• Michaela Stavropoulos, Zeta Lambda – Texas A&M
• Rebecca Sternberg, Beta Epsilon – South Carolina
• Jennifer Thorpe, Zeta Omicron – Georgia Tech
• Elizabeth Upchurch, Zeta Psi – UNC, Greensboro
• Justice Williams, Epsilon Rho – UNLV
• Elizabeth Wright, Zeta Omicron – Georgia Tech

Convention held by the Texas State Alumnae Association in Waco, TX.