Beta Kappa

Beta Kappa (ΒΚ) was an American college fraternity that was founded in 1901 at Hamline University in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It established 47 chapters in the United States before merging with Theta Chi in 1942.

Beta Kappa
ΒΚ
Founded	October 15, 1901 (1901-10-15) Hamline University
Type	Social
Former affiliation	NIC
Status	Merged
Merge date	April 14, 1942
Successor	Theta Chi (Mostly)
Scope	National
Member badge
Colors	Purple and   Gold
Symbol	Coiled serpent, Lamp, Crossed swords
Flower	Yellow rose
Publication	Beta Kappa Journal
Chapters	47
Members	6,000+ lifetime
Headquarters	Saint Paul, Minnesota United States

History

Beta Kappa was formed at Hamline University in Saint Paul, Minnesota on October 15, 1901, with the name The Knights of Beta Omicron Sigma Kappa. Eventually, this somewhat unwieldy name was colloquially shortened to Beta Kappa, maturing into a local fraternity that continued for twenty-one years before beginning a period of rapid expansion. Its founders were Edward T. Marlatte, Daniel Paul Rader, Albert T. Spencer, and Charles H. Wallace. Beta Kappa was incorporated in 1912.

In 1922, the Beta chapter was established at the University of Washington. The fraternity's grand convention held its first meeting in 1923 in Saint Pail. The Gamma chapter was established at the Nebraska Wesleyan University in 1924.

The fraternity established a committee on expansion in 1925. In quick succession, Beta Kappa established 47 chapters with a total membership of over 5,000. An award cup was presented annually for the best chapter scholarship and national relations.

Beta Kappa became a junior member of the National Interfraternity Conference in 1926, and a full member in 1928. In 1929, it had initiated 2,173 members. Membership dropped during the Great Depression; by 1940, only 25 of its 47 chapters were still active. The start of World War II further weakened the fraternity with a reduction in membership. In 1942, it had 22 chapters. Beta Kappa's leadership decided to seek a merger with another national fraternity.

Beta Kappa merged with Theta Chi on April 14, 1942, with three exceptions released to join other national groups. The mother chapter at Hamline University was granted the chapter name, Beta Kappa chapter, to honor its rank as a former Alpha chapter. The merger added 6,000 members and seventeen new chapters to Theta Chi; two Beta Kappa chapters were merged into existing chapters.

Symbols

Beta Kappa's badge was shaped like a diamond in black enamel, longer from top to bottom, with 24 pearls on its perimeter. It held a small, white circular disk in the center with a coiled serpent; above was a lamp, and below were two crossed swords. On the sides of the disk were the Greek letters "Β" and "Κ".

The fraternity's colors were purple and gold. Its flower was a yellow (golden) rose. It magazine was The Journal of Beta Kappa, established in 1924.

Governance

Beta Kappa was governed by a grand convention that met biennially. At these annual meetings, the fraternity elected its grand executive council, consisting of seven members. The grand executive council oversaw operations between grand conventions. The first grand convention was held in 1923 in Saint Paul, followed by a meeting in 1925 in Saint Paul; a 1927 meeting in Cleveland, Ohio; and a 1929 meeting in Jamestown, New York.

In 1925, the fraternity established a national office in Oakland, California. It moved to Tuscon, Arizona in 1927 and to Oxford, Ohio in 1929.

Chapters

The chapters of Beta Kappa were as follows.

Chapter	Charter date and range	Institution	Location	Status	Ref.
Alpha	October 15, 1901 – April 15, 1942	Hamline University	Saint Paul, Minnesota	Merged (ΘΧ)
Beta	1922–1936	University of Washington	Seattle, Washington	Inactive
Gamma	1923–1933	Nebraska Wesleyan University	Lincoln, Nebraska	Inactive
Delta	1924–1932	University of California	Berkeley, California	Inactive
Epsilon	1925 – April 15, 1942	Middlebury College	Middlebury, Vermont	Merged (ΘΧ)
Zeta	1925 – April 15, 1942	University of Cincinnati	Cincinnati, Ohio	Merged (ΘΧ)
Eta	1925–1934	Bucknell University	Lewisburg, Pennsylvania	Inactive
Theta	1925–1934	Tufts University	Medford, Massachusetts	Inactive
Iota	1925 – April 15, 1942	University of Nevada	Reno, Nevada	Merged (ΘΧ)
Kappa	1925 – April 15, 1942	University of Illinois	Champaign and Urbana, Illinois	Merged (ΘΧ)
Lambda	1926 – April 15, 1942	Oregon State University	Corvallis, Oregon	Merged (ΘΧ)
Mu	1926–1931	University of Wisconsin	Madison, Wisconsin	Inactive
Nu	1926–1934	Miami University	Oxford, Ohio	Inactive
Xi	1926	Allegheny College	Meadville, Pennsylvania	Merged (ΘΧ)
Omicron	1926–1935	University of Maine	Orono, Maine	Inactive
Pi	1926 – April 15, 1942	Monmouth College	Monmouth, Illinois	Merged (ΘΧ)
Rho	1926 – April 15, 1942	Illinois Wesleyan University	Bloomington, Illinois	Merged (ΘΧ)
Sigma	1927–1942	Auburn University	Auburn, Alabama	Withdrew (ΦΚΤ)
Tau	1927–1940	Pennsylvania State University	University Park, Pennsylvania	Inactive
Upsilon	1927–1937	University of Denver	Denver, Colorado	Inactive
Phi	1927–1934	Boston University	Boston, Massachusetts	Inactive
Chi	1927–1933	University of Virginia	Charlottesville, Virginia	Inactive
Psi	1927 – April 15, 1942	Birmingham–Southern College	Birmingham, Alabama	Merged (ΘΧ)
Omega	1928–1935	University of Pennsylvania	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Inactive
Alpha Alpha	1928–1935	Ohio State University	Columbus, Ohio	Inactive
Alpha Beta	1928–1933	Wabash College	Crawfordsville, Indiana	Inactive
Alpha Gamma	1929–1942	Georgia Tech	Atlanta, Georgia	Withdrew (ΛΧΑ)
Alpha Delta	1929–1941	Mississippi State University	Starkville, Mississippi	Inactive
Alpha Epsilon	1929–1939	University of Arizona	Columbus, Ohio	Inactive
Alpha Zeta	1929 – April 15, 1942	University of Tennessee at Chattanooga	Chattanooga, Tennessee	Merged (ΘΧ)
Alpha Eta	1930 – April 15, 1942	Presbyterian College	Clinton, South Carolina	Merged (ΘΧ)
Alpha Theta	1930 – April 15, 1942	University of Southern California	Los Angeles, California	Merged (ΘΧ)
Alpha Iota	1930–1940	Denison University	Granville, Ohio	Inactive
Alpha Kappa	1930–1940	Utah State University	Logan, Utah	Inactive
Alpha Lambda	1930–1935	University of Florida	Gainesville, Florida	Inactive
Alpha Mu	1931 – April 15, 1942	Furman University	Greenville, South Carolina	Merged (ΘΧ)
Alpha Nu	1931 – April 15, 1942	Case Western Reserve University	Cleveland, Ohio	Merged (ΘΧ)
Alpha Xi	1932–1933	University of Utah	Salt Lake City, Utah	Inactive
Alpha Omicron	1933–1936	Hamilton College	Clinton, New York	Inactive
Alpha Pi	1934–1936	Cornell University	Ithaca, New York	Withdrew (ΑΤΩ)
Alpha Rho	1934–1941	Western Colorado University	Gunnison, Colorado	Inactive
Alpha Sigma	1934 – April 15, 1942	Lehigh University	Bethlehem, Pennsylvania	Merged (ΘΧ)
Alpha Tau	1935 – April 15, 1942	University of Akron	Akron, Ohio	Merged (ΘΧ)
Alpha Upsilon	1935 – April 15, 1942	California State University, Fresno	Fresno, California	Merged (ΘΧ)
Alpha Gamma	1936–1942	Michigan State University	East Lansing, Michigan	Withdrew (ΣΧ)
Alpha Chi	1938–1941	Kansas State University	Manhattan, Kansas	Inactive
Alpha Psi	1938 – April 15, 1942	Susquehanna University	Fresno, California	Merged (ΘΧ)

Notable members

• Paul Rader, college football coach and president of the Christian and Missionary Alliance

See also

• Theta Chi
• List of social fraternities