Sigma Psi Zeta

Sigma Psi Zeta
ΣΨΖ
Founded	March 23, 1994 (1994-03-23) University at Albany
Type	Cultural interest
Emphasis	Asian American
Scope	National
Motto	"Lead from the front."
Colors	Red and Gold
Flower	Yellow Rose with Baby's Breath
Philanthropy	To Combat Violence Against Women
Chapters	33
Nickname	SYZ, Sigmas
Homepage	http://www.sigmapsizeta.org

Sigma Psi Zeta (ΣΨΖ) Sorority, Inc. is a progressive multicultural sorority with roots in Asian/Pacific Islander American women's issues advocacy. It was founded on March 23, 1994 at the University at Albany and incorporated in New York on March 15, 1996 by the 10 Founding Mothers. The sorority's colors are red and gold and its flower is a yellow rose with baby's breath. It is a part of the National APIA Panhellenic Association (NAPA).

Sigma Psi Zeta is a cultural, social, educational and community service–oriented Greek organization. It is the third largest Asian-interest sorority in the nation. Its philanthropic focus is to combat violence against women in its various forms. Sigma Psi Zeta is an official partner of the White House initiative, It's On Us, which launched as a result of the ARC3 Survey.

Sigma Psi Zeta currently has active sisterships in the states/commonwealths of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, and Washington D.C. It has 33 sisterships in the United States.

History

Plans for the Sigma Psi Zeta sorority were formed in the Fall semester of 1993 at SUNY Albany by a group of female undergraduates from different backgrounds. The sorority was formed in part to address the dual difficulties faced by Asian women. On March 23, 1994 the sorority was officially recognized by the University. Within a year, a second chapter was formed at University at Buffalo.^[1]

The founding mothers were:

• Gina Han
• Sally Hsieh
• Jean Kim
• Jenny Kim
• Sandra Lam
• Winnie Liu
• Yan-Chieh Liu
• Michelle Macaraig
• Sung-Yon Noh
• Loan Trang

Philanthropy

Since 1999, Sigma Psi Zeta's philanthropy has been to combat violence against women. The sorority has worked against violence against women in many forms, and has focused specifically on Asian women who are historically objectified and disempowered. Local chapters and colonies participate in events such as the Take Back The Night rallies, and the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence's Domestic Violence Awareness month.^[2]

Sistership Locations

Chapters

• [Α] Alpha Chapter – University at Albany, The State University of New York – Albany, NY
• [Δ] Delta Chapter – University at Buffalo, The State University of New York – Buffalo, NY
• [H] Eta Chapter – State University of New York at Stony Brook – Stony Brook, NY
• [Θ] Theta Chapter – University of Massachusetts Amherst – Amherst, MA
• [I] Iota Chapter – University of Rochester – Rochester, NY
• [Λ] Lambda Chapter – University of Virginia – Charlottesville, VA
• [N] Nu Chapter – Drexel University – Philadelphia, PA
• [Ξ] Xi Chapter – University of Nebraska-Lincoln – Lincoln, NE
• [O] Omicron Chapter – Stanford University – Stanford, CA
• [Π] Pi Chapter – The George Washington University – Washington, D.C.
• [P] Rho Chapter – University of Washington – Seattle, WA
• [T] Tau Chapter – University of Maryland at College Park – College Park, MD
• [Y] Upsilon Chapter – University of Pennsylvania – Philadelphia, PA
• [Φ] Phi Chapter – University of Colorado at Boulder – Boulder, CO
• [ΑΒ] Alpha Beta Chapter – Northwestern University – Evanston, IL
• [ΑΚ] Alpha Kappa Chapter – University of Minnesota, Twin Cities – Minneapolis, MN

Charters

• [Β] Beta Charter – Binghamton University – Binghamton, NY
• [K] Kappa Charter – Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) – Blacksburg, VA
• [M] Mu Charter – State University of New York at Geneseo – Geneseo, NY
• [ΑΓ] Alpha Gamma Charter – Villanova University – Villanova, PA
• [ΑΔ] Alpha Delta Charter – Rutgers University – New Brunswick, NJ
• [ΑΕ] Alpha Epsilon Charter – University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign – Champaign, IL
• [ΑΖ] Alpha Zeta Charter – University of the Sciences – Philadelphia, PA
• [ΑΘ] Alpha Theta Charter – Wichita State University – Wichita, KS
• [ΑΙ] Alpha Iota Charter – University of California, Berkeley – Berkeley, CA
• [ΑΛ] Alpha Lambda Charter – Rochester Institute of Technology – Rochester, NY
• [ΑΜ] Alpha Mu Charter – University of Kansas – Lawrence, KS

Colonies

• [Γ] Gamma – Jamaica, NY
• [E] Epsilon – Oneonta, NY
• [Z] Zeta – New York, NY
• [X] Chi – Shippensburg, PA
• [ΑΑ] Alpha Alpha – New Haven, CT
• [ΑΗ] Alpha Eta – New York City, NY

References