Community service and academic achievement are the cornerstones of the Divine Nine (D9), a conglomerate of traditional Black Fraternities and Sororities. The local Seattle chapters of these organizations – Alpha Phi Alpha, Kappa Alpha Psi, Omega Psi Phi, Phi Beta Sigma, Iota Phi Theta, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta, Zeta Phi Beta and Sigma Gamma Rho – are very active by way of community service and are a source of underutilized scholarship opportunities for many college-bound students from the Pacific Northwest.
Born out of academia, Greek letter organizations are fueled and populated by those who value the power of education, and all of the organizations take pride in providing scholarship funds so the next generation of leaders in their chosen field can continue their education after graduating from high school. This year, the collective efforts of the local chapters will distribute $23,000 in scholarship funds to graduating high school seniors and undergraduate students who are continuing their college matriculation, with Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority providing the largest individual scholarships, as they will award two (2) $2,500 scholarships this year.
One of longest standing collective organizations in the Black community next to faith-based organizations (churches, mosques, etc.) and civil liberty organizations such as the NAACP and the Urban League, Greek lettered organization have been providing leadership and service to the well-being of the Black community since the beginning of the 20th century.
During a time when many families are struggling to make ends meet as a result of the pandemic, many students are having to put off their educational pursuits due to finances, and for many others who are able to continue their education without disruption, they could be saddled with the burden of student loan debt.
By tapping into scholarship opportunities like those offered by the Divine 9, members of the various fraternities and sororities hope that they can provide some assistance to lessen the financial burden of the scholarship recipients and their families.
“I think, statistics show that Black and Brown students are in more need of financial assistance than most others and graduate with the most debt once they graduate,” says Ki Thompson, a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and president of the Seattle chapter of the National Pan Hellenic Council (NPHC) — the collective body of the D9. “So, scholarships definitely help because it obviously minimizes the burden that students would have once, they’ve graduated from college.”
