RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, recognized as the first Greek letter sorority established by and for African-American women, is celebrating its 112th anniversary and Founders' Day on January 15, 2020; and
WHEREAS, Established in 1908 by a group of sixteen students at Howard University in Washington, D.C, AKA has remained true to its basic tenets: to cultivate and encourage high scholastic and ethical standards, to promote unity and friendship among college women, to study and help alleviate problems facing girls and women in order to improve their social, stature, to maintain a progressive interest in college life, and to be of "Service to All Mankind"; and
WHEREAS, AKA serves through a membership of nearly 300,000 women in over 1,000 undergraduate and graduate chapters located across the United States and around the world; and
WHEREAS, Beta Chapter of AKA was chartered in 1913 and is the second oldest chapter in the organization, encompassing five Chicago-area schools: University of Chicago, Loyola University Chicago, University of Illinois at Chicago, Columbia College Chicago, and Roosevelt University; and
WHEREAS, Lorraine Richardson Green, President of Beta Chapter and graduate of the University of Chicago, was elected and served as the second National President of AKA. During her administration, the Founders' Day Celebration was initiated, the AKA coat of arms was adopted, and the first issue ofthe Ivy Leaf magazine was published; and
WHEREAS, AKA is dedicated to implementing programs of service that enhance the social, economic, and educational well-being of the local, national, and international communities, including through its signature program, which guides and supports students completing the college application and enrollment process; and
WHEREAS, AKA's corporate headquarters, the Ivy Center, has been located in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago since 1985, and was reopened in 2018 after an extensive redesign and modernization; and
WHEREAS, It is appropriate that the City of Chicago salute AKA for 112 years of exemplary leadership in scholastic achievement, civil engagement, and public service, and celebrate AKA's contributions to the City; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor and Members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, assembled this fifteenth day of January, 2020, do hereby recognize and congratulate Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, on the occasion of its Founders' Day and extend our sincere appreciation and best wishes for its continued success; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be sent to representatives of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, as a token of our esteem.
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WHEREAS, It is appropriate that the City of Chicago salute AKA for 112 years of exemplary leadership in scholastic achievement, civil engagement, and public service, and celebrate AKA's contributions to the City; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor and Members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, assembled this fifteenth day of January, 2020, do hereby recognize and congratulate Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, on the occasion of its Founders' Day and extend our sincere appreciation and best wishes for its continued success; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be sent to. represe'ntatives'of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority^lncorpprated, as a token pf .our esteem.