On March 7, 1914, Diggs and Caine from Alpha and Prince from Beta represented the Grand Chapter in establishing a chapter at the University of Iowa, naming it the Delta Chapter of Kappa Alpha Nu. Since the Gamma of Indianapolis was defunct, the Grand Chapter decided that in the future only active chapters would be designated after the Greek alphabet; and alumni chapters would be named for the cities I which they are located. The name of Iowa Chapter was changed from Delta to Gamma, and the name Delta awaited establishment of the fourth college chapter.

One evening as Diggs sat watching his fraternity brother, Frank Summers, run the hurdles he and brother Peters overheard one white student say to another…”He is a member of Kappa Alpha Nig…” They did not know their remarks were overheard until tapped by digs and told, “The Fraternity is Kappa Alpha Nu.”

The Fourth Grand Chapter of Kappa Alpha Nu was held at the University of Illinois, December 30-31, 1914, and January 1, 1915, with the Beta Chapter as host. With the convention coming only twenty months after the Chapter’s establishment, local member was apprehensive. However, the session was a success.

The conduct of business was climaxed with legislation to change the Fraternity name from Kappa Alpha Nu to Kappa Alpha Psi, with the purpose of having a Greek character in the alphabetical designation. But those who knew of the Frank Summers’ incident at the track meet early in the fall, felt that the Greek character was a secondary consideration.

Other business of lasting significance in the development of the thirty-six-month-old Fraternity was the authorization of the fourth active or undergraduate chapter, to be located at Wilberforce University; officially dissolution of the Gamma Chapter of alumni members at Indianapolis and the assignment of the name Gamma to the Iowa Chapter; and designation of the soon-to-be-established Wilberforce Chapter as Delta. Wilberforce would be the first all-black school at which a chapter was located. Diggs had laid the groundwork in the fall of 1914.


The Delta Chapter was formally established at Wilberforce University, January 22, 1915. Elder Watson Diggs, Sylvester DuValle and W. Ellis Stuart formed the initiating team. The faculty members were Dean Gilbert H. Jones and Professors D.W. Woodward, B.H. Green and A. J. White. The undergraduate initiates were L. Simpson, W.B. Johnson, C.E. Hunter, M.E. Jackson, R.L. Crawford, L.W. Turner, O.H. Sweet and G.J. Gaines. True to its resolution to uphold the Fraternity Purpose or Achievement, the Chapter played a conspicuous part in campus activities. Simpson Gaines and Crawford, all members of the baseball team, were respectively the editor, alumni editor and athletic editor of The Sodalian, a school publication.

Source: “THE STORY OF KAPPA ALPHA PSI”