Alpha Kappa Alpha was brought to the mid-west by Soror Beulah Burke, one of the original nine founders. Soror Burke founded Delta, the fourth chapter of the sorority at the University of Kansas in 1915 and Lambda (now Beta Omega), the second graduate chapter of the sorority, in Kansas City, Missouri in 1920. Soror Burke's commitment to building the sorority in the mid-west, coupled with then Supreme Basileus Nellie Quander's determination that Alpha Kappa Alpha should "expand to every nook and corner of the land", provided a solid foundation for what we now know as the Mid-Western Region.
Mid-Western Region was established in 1924. The region is comprised of the states of Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma. Sorors of the Mid-Western Region have been deeply involved in all facets of Alpha Kappa Alpha. Many have held national/international offices. The region has been the birthplace of 5 International Presidents and 2 Organizers: Lorraine R. Green, 2nd Supreme Basileus; Edna Over Campbell, 12th Supreme Basileus; Laura Lovelace, 13th Supreme Basileus; Larzette G. Hale, 17th Supreme Basileus; Barbara A. McKinzie; 27th Supreme Basileus, Grace M. Hill, Eastern Organizer; and Blanche Lynn Patterson, Western Organizer.
Mid-Western Regional Directors
Blanche L. Patterson (1919-1922) Maida P. McCullough (1922-1923) Buelah Burke (1923-1925) Judith S. Wisdom (1925-1927) Mary E. Branch (1929-1931) Theresa B. Woodruff (1931-1933) Helen F. Anderson (1934-1936) Rosetta N. Webb (1936-1939) Manilaa Darden Hickman (1939-1941) Gwendolyn B. Jones (1941-1946)
Robbie T. Davis (1946-1949) Gladys Bowles (1950-1952) Marguerite Foshee (1952-1956) Esther Payne (1956-1960) Zelma McIntosh Bell (1960-1962) Dorothy King Tucker (1962-1966) Carolyn A. Banner (1966-1970) Jewell F. Neal (1970-1972) Dorothy M. Parker (1972-1976) Delorise A. Gines (1976-1980)
Wanda F. Johnson (1980-1982) Margie Barre (1982-1986) Wesslyne Simpson (1986-1990) Nettie Fisher (1990-1994) Alberta Jones (1994-1998) Brenda Lewis (1998-2002) Betty Davis-Gause (2002-2006) Vicki Miles-LaGrange (2006-present)
