National Councils and Conferences

Our Community

At DePaul, Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) is just one part of a holistic student experience. Our fraternities and sororities are student-led organizations that enhance the student experience both inside and outside the classroom. DePaul Fraternity and Sorority members make up approximately 10% of the student population and are also involved in several other student organizations across campus. The Fraternity and Sorority Community at DePaul consists of 27 chapters. There are 10 male fraternities, 16 female sororities, and 1 co-educational organization. Our chapters are governed by four councils: Interfraternity Council (IFC), Multicultural Greek Council (MGC), National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC), and Panhellenic Council (PHC).

National Councils and Conferences

There are six major national councils and conferences that sororities and fraternities can belong to. Learning about them will help to illustrate the diverse landscape of sorority and fraternity today. Some national councils and conferences correspond directly to local councils that we have (i.e., NPHC), but not always. For example, our MGC has some chapters that belong to NALFO and some that belong to NAPA. It is also worth noting that some organizations do not belong to any national council or conference, operating independently instead. The section below describes the history of each major national council and conference.

National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations (NALFO)

The National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations (NALFO) is an umbrella council for 18 Latino Greek Letter Organizations established in 1998. The purpose of NALFO is to promote and foster positive inter fraternal relations, communication, and development of all Latino fraternal organizations through mutual respect, leadership, honesty, professionalism, and education.

Established in 1998, the National Association of Latino Fraternal Organizations, set out to become the uniting force for Latino-based fraternities and sororities. Latino organizations had developed in different parts of the United States in their early years, and this created difficulties for the organizations to find information on their peer groups in an effort to come together.

National Asian Pacific Islander American Panhellenic Association (NAPA)

NAPA is a collective group of leaders within the APIA community who work together to advocate, collaborate, and educate our members and constituency for the greater good. We represent our member organizations within the fraternal and university communities.

The National Asian Pacific Islander American Panhellenic Association (NAPA) began in the summer of 2004 when a group of 14 APIA fraternities and sororities joined together to form the APIA Greek Alliance (AGA). Formed as a partnership in a grassroots "Get Out the Vote" campaign with APIA Vote, an organization that promotes civic participation among Asian and Pacific Islander Americans, the members of the AGA registered over 8,000 new voters. Through continued collaboration, it was recognized that there was a need for an umbrella organization for APIA fraternities and sororities, and the fraternities and sororities in attendance chose to form the foundation for what would become the National Asian Pacific Islander American Panhellenic Association.

North American Interfraternity Conference (NIC)

Founded in 1909, the North American Interfraternity Conference, Inc. is the trade association representing 70 International and National Men's Fraternities. The NIC serves to advocate the needs of its member fraternities through enrichment of the fraternity experience, advancement and growth of the fraternity community, and enhancement of the educational mission of the host institutions.

The NIC is also committed to enhancing the benefits of fraternity membership through its relationship with Interfraternity Councils. Today, the NIC's member organizations have approximately 5,500 chapters located on more than 800 campuses in the United States and Canada with approximately 350,000 undergraduate members.

National Multicultural Greek Council (NMGC)

The National Multicultural Greek Council (NMGC) is an umbrella council for a coalition of Multicultural Greek-letter organizations. established in 1998. The purpose of NMGC is to provide a forum that allows for the free exchange of ideas, programs, and services between its constituent fraternities and sororities, to promote the awareness of multicultural diversity within collegiate institutions, their surrounding communities, and the greater community-at-large, and to support and promote the works of its member organizations.

National Panhellenic Conference (NPC)

The National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) provides support and guidance for its 26 member inter/national sororities/women's fraternities and serves as the national voice on contemporary issues of sorority life. Founded in 1902, the NPC is one of the oldest and largest women's membership organizations representing more than 4 million women at 655 college/university campuses and 4,500 local alumnae chapters in the U.S. and Canada. Each year, NPC-affiliated collegians and alumnae donate more than $5 million to worthy causes, provide $2.8 million in scholarships to women and volunteer 500,000 hours in their communities.

National Pan-Hellenic Conference (NPHC)

The National Pan-Hellenic Council, Incorporated (NPHC) is currently composed of 9 International Greek letter sororities and fraternities. NPHC promotes interaction through forums, meetings and other mediums for the exchange of information and engages in cooperative programming and initiatives through various activities and functions.

On May 10, 1930, on the campus of Howard University in Washington DC, the National Pan-Hellenic Council was formed asa a permanent organization with the following charter members: Omega Psi Phi and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternities, and Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta and Zeta Phi Beta Sororities. In 1931, Alpha Phi Alpha and Phi Beta Sigma Fraternities joined the Council. Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority joined in 1937 and Iota Phi Theta Fraternity completed the list of member organizations in 1997.