The sorority’s six founding members pose inside the SMC atrium: Khadijah Clark, Shamecia Pullem, De’Nonna Jones, Vanessa Jackson, Madison Sparks and Jade Carless. (Courtesy of Khadija Clark)
Incoming sorority, Sigma Theta Nu, hopes to attain greek status this fall.
Knox may be welcoming a new sorority to campus as early as this fall.
Sigma Theta Nu will be the first of its kind, both at Knox and in the country. Sophomore Madison Sparks is the president of the sorority and has admitted that the process of creating a new sorority has been extensive but ultimately rewarding. From completing paperwork to working on creative matters, it has all been a new experience for Sparks and the other members.
“When explaining why an organization is important, you gotta have to explain why yours is different from others too…” Sparks said. “(Sororities) all have similar goals and missions but we go about them a bit different.”
The idea to create a sorority first came to mind when a group of Sparks and her friends were discussing how they had wanted to attend an HBCU and desiring the cultural immersion that came with it as a woman of color. In addition to that, they had discussed wanting to be in a sorority largely because of having many family members that were involved in Greek life. Following these conversations, sophomore Khadijah Clark — the current treasurer — initiated the first meeting to actually create their own sorority.
“Every saturday and sunday we would get up early and talk about the name and our mission statement and things like that.” Sparks said.
The last Greek life chapters established at Knox were Sigma Chi and Gentlemen of Quality in 2007. Now rather than implementing a chapter on campus, they are creating an entirely new sorority with its own customs, recruitment process and mission statement.
The sorority currently has approval as a student organization on campus so they are able to bring in members and host events, but have not received sorority status yet. The group is awaiting an upcoming faculty meeting for approval sometime this term. It was originally supposed to happen last spring but was delayed due to COVID-19.
Sparks and the rest of the members wanted to create an environment unique to Knox. One of the main sources of inspiration came from attending both A.B.L.E. and Sisters of Excellence and wanting to combine both of those entities into one.
“When you’re around people that look like you and share the same stories and can understand your experience or your background easier,” Sparks said. “The easier it is to feel more welcomed on campus.”
For now, the group is hoping to acquire sorority status this fall but still functions as a student organization with leadership roles. In fact, the current members frequently switch up their roles so that all can experience varying degrees of leadership and responsibility.
Sparks and the rest of Sigma Theta Nu are welcoming members regardless of sorority status.
