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National History / Chapter History
Georgia O'Keeffe (Beta Chapter -- Chatham Episcopal Institute, Chatham, VA) was one of the most compelling American artists of the 20th century. Her paintings are known for their vivid portrayals of the emotions found in nature. In 1977, she received the Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, from President Gerald Ford. President Ronald Reagan presented her with the Medal of the Arts in 1985. During her years in KΔ, she contributed to the design of our initiation ceremony. Find out more about Kappa Delta's partnership with the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum here.
Pearl Sydenstricker Buck (Theta Chapter -- Randolph-Macon College, Ashland, VA) was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist. During her life, she wrote over 100 works of literature; the most well-known of these was The Good Earth, which she wrote in 1931. In 1938, she became the first American woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature. Though she attended college in the United States, she grew up in China with her parents, who were missionaries. As a result, she was a passionate human rights activist. In 1949, she established the first international, interracial adoption agency. She was the mother of six adopted bi-racial children herself.
Ruth Johnson Colvin (Lambda Chapter -- Northwestern University, Evanston, IL) is the founder of Literacy Volunteers of America, now ProLiteracy Worldwide. She became aware of the problem of illiteracy in 1960 when the census report was released in her home city of Syracuse, New York. She began working with reading specialists at Syracuse University to develop materials to train tutors, and began recruiting and training women from her church women's group. The organization now has nearly 330 programs in 42 states and over 100,000 volunteer tutors and students participating. In 2006, she received the Medal of Freedom from President George W. Bush.
Donna Stone (Lambda Chapter -- Northwestern University, Evanston, IL) is the founder of the National Committee to Prevent Child Abuse, now Prevent Child Abuse America, an organization which strives to prevent the abuse and neglect of our nation's children. The organization was founded in 1972, and now has chapters in 42 states. PCAA is currently one of Kappa Delta's national philanthropies. You can find out more about Kappa Delta's involvement in PCAA here.
Dr. Cynthia Clark Wedel (Lambda Chapter -- Northwestern University, Evanston, IL) was the first woman president of the National Council of Churches. She co-founded the Churches' Center for Theology and Public Policy, and was committed to bringing moral values to bear on public policy.
Trischa Zorn (Pi Chapter -- University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE) is an award-winning athlete and champion swimmer. Legally blind, she was won 55 Paralympic medals and has set eight world records since 1980. She has won more Paralympic gold medals than any other athlete in history.
Claudia Kennedy (Alpha Delta Chapter -- Rhodes College, Memphis, TN) is the fist female three-star general in the United States Army and the highest ranking female officer in Army history. She was commissioned in the United States Army in 1969 and served two tours in Germany and one tour in South Korea. Her military career focused mainly in the fields of intelligence and cryptology. She retired in 2000 after serving 31 years in the Army.
Sara James (Beta Alpha Chapter -- University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA) is an award-winning Dateline NBC Correspondent. She joined the broadcast in 1994, and has since received several awards and covered stories in both the U.S. and overseas. In 1999, she received an Emmy Award for outstanding coverage of news story "Killing at Columbine." She also has received two Gracie Awards in 2001 and 2004; one for her report, "The Long Journey Back," chronicling a family's ordeal after the Columbine massacre, and another for "Life in the Fast Lane," about the impact of methamphetamine addictions in women. In 2004, she also received a Headliner award for "Meet Jane Doe," a report on the final September 11th victim's release from the hospital. She also serves as a substitute co-anchor and substitute newsreader on Today and Weekend Today.
Suzy Spafford Lidstrom (Beta Rho Chapter -- San Diego State University, San Diego, CA) is a cartoonist and the creator of Suzy's Zoo greeting cards and stationary. She received the National Cartoonist Society Greeting Card Award in 1996.
Kathleen Babineau Blanco (Gamma Kappa Chapter -- University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Lafayette, LA) is the first female to be elected Governor of Louisiana. Prior to her election, she served two terms as Lt. Governor.
Ali Landry (Gamma Kappa Chapter -- University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Lafayette, LA) was crowned Miss USA in 1996. She went on to begin a career as a film and television actress and model. In 1998, she was named one of People Magazine's 50 most beautiful people in the world. In 2002, she was the host of Spy TV, and was a regular cast member of the sitcom Eve from 2003 to 2006. She has appeared in several other television shows and films, including 2006's Bella, which was directed by her husband, Alejandro Gomez Monteverde.
Debbie Maffett Wilson (Gamma Rho Chapter -- Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX) was crowned Miss America in 1983. She has starred in, hosted, written, and produced numerous television programs, and was also nominated for an Emmy. She later moved on to Nashville, where she has written and produced several country albums.
Patricia Wood Barnes aka "Sister Schubert" (Delta Delta Chapter -- Troy University, Troy, AL) is the founder of Sister Schubert's Homemade Rolls, a multi-million dollar corporation now owned by the T. Marzetti Company. Her rolls can be found in the freezer section of grocery stores in more than half the states in the U.S.
Janet Marie Smith (Delta Omega Chapter -- Mississippi State University, Mississippi State, MS) is an urban visionary, planner, and business woman. She is currently Vice President of planning and development for Struever Bros. Eccles and Rouse. She has been involved in projects including the creation of Philips Arena, renovation of the CNN Center, improvements to Centennial Olympic Park, conversion of Atlanta's 1996 Olympic Stadium into Turner Field, and development of Oriole Park at Camden Yards. She spent 1981 through 1984 working as Coordinator of Architecture and Design for Battery Park City in New York.
Jean Carpenter Carnahan (Epsilon Alpha Chapter -- University of Missouri-Rolla, Rolla, MO) is an American politician who became the first woman to represent Missouri in the senate. She was in office from January 2001 through November 2002. He has also served as an advocate for on-site day care enters for working families, childhood immunization, abuse centers, the arts, and Habitat for Humanity, and has written four books and numerous opinion pieces.
Joan Lowery Nixon (Theta Sigma Chapter -- University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA) was an author and journalist, specializing in historical fiction and mysteries for children and young adults. Her stories were known for their strong, self-sufficient female leads. She won four Edgar Allan Poe Awards from the Mystery Writers of America, won the California Young Reader Medal of the California Library Association twice, won the Western Writers of America's "Golden Spur Award" twice, and also received the Texas Institute of Letters Award. She is currently the only person ever to have won the Edgar for Best Juvenile Mystery four times.
Dr. Bonnie J. Dunbar (Sigma Iota Chapter -- University of Washington, Seattle, WA) is a Space Shuttle Astronaut who is currently President and CEO of The Museum of Flight. She has received numerous awards and recognitions, including induction into the Women in Technology International Hall of Fame, one of only five women in the world so honored. She has earned five NASA Space Flight Medals, and has spent over 1,208 hours in space. She served as a mission specialist on five space flights and is considered one of the most experienced female astronauts in the world.
Christine O'Grady Gregoire (Sigma Iota Chapter -- University of Washington, Seattle, WA) is the Democratic Governor of the state of Washington. She is Washington's second female governor. Prior to her current post, she served as the director of the Washington Department of Ecology, then served three terms as Washington Attorney General.
Nancy Thies Marshall (Sigma Omicron Chapter -- University of Illinois, Urbana, IL) is vice chair for women of USA Gymnastics, a network television broadcaster, and a 1972 Olympic gymnast.
Patricia Polito Miller (Sigma Upsilon Chapter -- Indiana University, Bloomington, IN) is a co-founder of Vera Bradley Designs, former Secretary of Commerce for the State of Indiana and CEO of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, recipient of Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year award, and founder of the Vera Bradley Breast Cancer Foundation.
Ellen Albertini Dow (Omega Chi Chapter -- Cornell University, Ithaca, NY) is a stage, television, and movie actress, best known as the "Rappin' Granny" Rosie in The Wedding Singer (1998). She has also appeared in Wedding Crashers, Radioland Murders, Will and Grace (as Karen's mother-in-law), The Golden Girls, and Seinfeld. She is a veteran of NYC's Yiddish theater and a former drama teacher in Los Angeles.
