Ethel hedgeman lyle biography

American sorority founder (1887–1950)

Ethel Hedgeman Lyle (born Ethel Hedgeman, sometimes spelled Hedgemon; February 10, 1887 – November 28, 1950) was a founder of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority (ΑΚΑ) at Howard University in 1908.

It was the first sorority founded by African-American college women. Lyle is often referred to as the "Guiding Light" for the organization.

Lyle had a forty-year career as an educator and was active in public life. She was National Treasurer of the sorority for more than twenty years.

Ethel Hedgeman Lyle was the first president of AKA's first alumnae chapter in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Lyle also founded the West Philadelphia chapter of the League of Women Voters and the Mothers Club in the city.

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In 2000, the Ethel Hedgeman Lyle Academy, a charter school in St. Louis, Missouri, was founded in her honor.

All these activities helped create social capital in the city in a time of rapid growth and population changes.

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