Chi Delta Mu () is a professional fraternity for students and graduates in the allied health professions. Founded at Howard University in 1913, Chi Delta Mu was traditionally an African American fraternity.Parks, Gregory S. (Ed.) Black Greek-letter Organizations in the Twenty-First Century: Our Fight Has Just Begun. The University Press of Kentucky. p. 216.
History Chi Delta Mu was founded in the Howard University College of Medicine in 1913. The first meeting laying the ground work for the fraternity took place on January 30, 1913, and it was presided over by E. Clayton Terry and Charles Humbert. The January meeting was attended by twenty-eight students, and several decided to return at a later date to formally establish the details of the new organization.
The meeting for organization took place on February 6, 1913, under the guidance of faculty member Dr. William C. McNeill. The name Chi Delta Mu was selected at a special meeting on February 11, 1913. The purpose of the fraternity was to "unite men of the medical professions of Medicine, Dentistry, and Pharmacy into a closer relationship so that the highest degree of efficiency and scientific ability might be developed." By 1923, the fraternity had twelve chapters.
Although traditionally made up of African American students, the fraternity integrated its membership in 1949 when a white student, Howard medical school senior Paul Guth, was admitted to membership in the Alpha chapter.Logan, Rayford W. Howard University: the First Hundred Years, 1867–1967. Howard University Press. p. 218. Hubert Humphrey was initiated as an honorary member of Chi Delta Mu in 1954. He was a key-note speaker at the fraternity's conclave in April of that year, where he was recognized for his efforts in the civil rights movement."Chi Delta Mu conclave to meet in Washington". Washington Afro-American. April 6, 1954. p. 7.
Fifteen graduate chapters and four undergraduate chapters existed as of 1968.1968 Howard University Bison Yearbook
The fraternity's national headquarters are in Shreveport, Louisiana.
Symbols The fraternity's pin closely resembles its crest. The pin is rendered in gold, with a rectangle affixed with the Greek letters of the society, surrounded by alternating stones in red and blue. The rectangle is surmounted by a Griffin, facing dexter. The fraternity's colors are red and blue.
Chapters Following is a list of chapters of Chi Delta Mu. Active chapters are indicated in bold. Inactive chapters are in italics. ChapterCharter dateInstitutionLocationStatus Alpha Howard University Washington, D.C. Active 1922 Howard University Yearbook Secret Societies 1927 Howard University Yearbook FRATS Beta <= 1922 Kansas City, Missouri Gamma <= 1922 St. Louis, Missouri Active Delta <= 1922 Newark, New Jersey Epsilon <= 1922 Boston, Massachusetts Zeta <= 1922 New York, New York Eta between 1922 and 1927 Kimball, West Virginia Theta between 1922 and 1927 Lawrence, Kansas Iota between 1922 and 1927 Baltimore, Maryland Active Kappa between 1922 and 1927 Boley, Oklahoma Lambda between 1922 and 1927 Washington, D.C. Active Mu between 1922 and 1927 Meharry Medical College Nashville, Tennessee Chi Delta Mu Fraternity Members Nu between 1922 and 1927 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Active Xi Brooklyn and Long Island, New York Active Pi Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Active New Pittsburgh Courier Sat, Mar 13, 1948 ·p. 8 Rho Richmond, Virginia Active Tau Xavier University of Louisiana New Orleans, Louisiana Inactive Tau Chapter of the Chi Delta Mu Fraternity at Xavier University of Louisiana (Photo). n.d. Xavier University of Louisiana, accessed May 18, 2024. Alpha Alpha <= 1963 Indianapolis Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 26 January 1963Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 6 March 1965
Notable members
Debbie Allen, actress, dancer, and choreographer Hubert Humphrey (Honorary), Vice President of the United States Thomas E. Jones, medical doctor and captain in the United States Army during World War I Ernest Everett Just, pioneering biologist, academic and science writer Theresa Greene Reed, physician and epidemiologist Frank S. Royal, physician and former president of the National Medical Association James Whittico Jr., physician and former president of the National Medical Association
References
External links
Chi Delta Mu (Getty Images)