Identity elements
Reference code
Name and location of repository
Level of description
Title
Date(s)
- 1956-2010 (Creation)
Extent
9 linear feet (including 220 photographic prints, 212 negatives, and 404 slides)
Name of creator
Biographical history
Sigma Theta Tau is a local sorority on the Trinity University campus in San Antonio, Texas. Founded in 1955 as the Kampus Kubs, the organization initially served as a two-year social and service club for sophomore and freshman women. In 1957, the Kampus Kubs expanded into a four-year club for women in all class years and adopted as its name the Greek letters Sigma Theta Tau--a designation that incorporated the concepts of sofía, thárros, and timí in Greek, or “wisdom, courage, and honor.”
Participation in the organization fluctuated in the 1960s with members graduating, marrying, or leaving Trinity to pursue their studies at other universities. In 1966, the smaller Kappa Psi Omega sorority, which faced similar recruitment and retention challenges, merged with Sigma Theta Tau to form one larger club. This new arrangement retained the name and traditions of Sigma Theta Tau, including the group’s blue, silver, and white colors and its signature star and white carnation (or later, rose) symbols. Today the sorority sponsors Trinity campus activities and service projects in the San Antonio community through its membership of over fifty women students.
Content and structure elements
Scope and content
This collection documents the traditions, administration, and club activities of the Sigma Theta Tau sorority from 1956 to 2010. Records comprise administrative files, meeting minutes, social event and service activity files, scrapbooks, awards, visual materials, and memorabilia. A small number of administrative documents, minutes, and booklets from the Trinity Sorority Council (TSC) are included among these files.
System of arrangement
The collection is organized into seven main series:
Series 1. Administrative Files, 1979-2008
Series 2. Minutes, 1976-1985
Series 3. Social Event and Service Activity Files, 1972-2005
Series 4. Awards, 2005-2008
Series 5. Memorabilia, 1963-2008
Series 6. Visual Materials, 1976-2007
Series 7. Scrapbooks, 1956-2010
Conditions of access and use elements
Conditions governing access
Parts of this collection are open and available to the public for research in the Special Collections & Archives reading room. The materials are non-circulating. Access to some items in this collection may be restricted to past and current members of Sigma Theta Tau only.
Physical access
Technical access
Conditions governing reproduction
The materials in this collection may be protected by copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code). The materials are available for personal, educational, and scholarly use. It is the responsibility of the researcher to locate and obtain permission from the copyright owner or his or her heirs for any other use, such as reproduction and publication.
Languages of the material
- English
Scripts of the material
Language and script notes
Finding aids
Generated finding aid
Acquisition and appraisal elements
Custodial history
Immediate source of acquisition
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information
Accruals
Related materials elements
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related archival materials
Related descriptions
Notes element
Specialized notes
- Citation: Sigma Theta Tau Collection, 1956-2010. Coates Library Special Collections & Archives, San Antonio, Texas.
Alternative identifier(s)
Description control element
Rules or conventions
DACS
Sources used
Archivist's note
Elissa Calfin processed this collection in January 2019.
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Trinity University (San Antonio, Tex.) (Subject)