Omega Psi Phi History

Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. is the first international fraternal organization founded on the campus of a historically black college. It was founded in Thirkield Hall at Howard University located in Washington, D.C. The founders were three undergraduates students; Edgar Amos Love, Oscar James Cooper and Frank Coleman. Joining them was their faculty adviser, Ernest Everett Just. The motto selected was “friendship is essential to the soul.” Manhood, Scholarship, Perseverance and Uplift were adopted as the Cardinal Principles.

On November 23, 1911, Edgar A. Love became the first Grand Basileus (National President). Oscar J. Cooper and Frank Coleman were selected to be the Grand Keeper of the Records (National Secretary) and Grand Keeper of Seals (National Treasurer), respectively. Eleven undergraduate men were selected to become the charter members.

Alpha chapter was organized with fourteen charter members on December 15, 1911. Brothers Edgar A. Love, Oscar J. Cooper and Frank Coleman were elected the chapter’s first Basileus, Keeper of Records, and Keeper of Seals, respectively.

Brother Cooper became the fraternity’s second Grand Basileus in 1912 and authorized the investigation of establishing a second chapter on the campus of Lincoln University located in Pennsylvania.

Brother Love was elected as the third Grand Basileus in 1912 and served until 1915. In 1912, Howard University officials did not initially recognize the fraternity as a national organization and Omega Psi Phi’s leadership refused to accept limited recognition. As a result, the fraternity operated without official sanction, until the university withdrew its opposition in 1914, the same year Beta chapter was chartered at Lincoln University.

Omega Psi Phi Fraternity was incorporated under the laws of the District of Columbia on October 28, 1914.

Brother George E. Hall, the fourth Grand Basileus, authorized the establishment of Gamma chapter in Boston.

Brother Clarence F. Holmes served as Omega’s sixth Grand Basileus. Under his leadership, the fraternity’s first official hymn, "Omega Men Draw Nigh," was written by Otto Bohannon.

Omega played a vital role when the United States entered World War I in 1917 by having several brothers in the first class of black soldiers graduate from Camp Fort Des Moines, a military training facility located in Iowa. Several Omegas, including Campbell C. Johnson, John Purnell and founders Frank Coleman and Edgar A. Love are among its graduates. A year later in 1918, retired Colonel Charles Young, rode 500 miles on horseback, from Wilberforce, Ohio, to the nation's capital, to show he was always fit for duty. Stanley Douglas served as editor to the first Oracle which was published in the spring of 1919.

In 1919, Raymond G. Robinson, the seventh Grand Basileus, established Delta chapter on the campus of Meharry Medical School which is located in Nashville, Tennessee.

Stanley Douglas served as Editor of the Oracle which was first published in the spring of 1919. When Robinson left office in 1920 there were ten chapters in operation.

Harold H. Thomas, the eighth Grand Basileus, was elected at the Nashville Grand Conclave in 1920. During this Conclave, Carter G. Woodson inspired the establishment of National Achievement Week to promote the study of Negro life and history.

The Atlanta Grand Conclave in 1921 ended the fraternity’s ambitious first decade.

Fast-forwarding to the 21st Century, the Fraternity celebrates its Centennial birthday as it continues to amass worthy accomplishments in efforts to make the world a better place for all to live and prosper. Most notably, during the 2014 Grand Conclave in Philadelphia, Brother Antonio F. Knox Sr. was elected the fraternity's 40th Grand Basileus. Thus far, under Knox, the fraternity champions a number of civil rights initiatives. Omega became a strong voice against police brutality, efforts to suppress voting rights and other social ills. The fraternity sought plausible solutions to civil unrest that erupted in urban communities following fatal police shootings of several unarmed African-Americans. Today, Omega Psi Phi has over 700 chapters throughout the United States, Bermuda, Bahamas, Virgin Islands, Korea, Japan, Liberia, Germany, and Kuwait. There are many notable Omega Men recognized as leaders in the arts, the sciences, academics, athletics, business, civil rights, education, government, and science sectors at the local, national and international level.

Omega continues to flourish, largely because founders -- Cooper, Coleman, Love and Just -- were men of the highest ideals and intellect. The founders selected and attracted men of similar ideals and characteristics. It is not an accident that many of America’s great black men are or were Omega Men.

Since its humble beginnings on the Howard University campus, the Omega Psi Phi fraternity continues to be on the front line, leveraging its power, influence and more than 100 years of commitment to the uplift of our people and our communities.