Ethel Hedgeman Lyle

Ethel Hedgeman Lyle
Ethel Hedgeman Lyle, original founder of Alpha Kappa Alpha
Born	(1887-02-10)February 10, 1887 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Died	November 28, 1950(1950-11-28) (aged 63) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.

Ethel Hedgeman Lyle (born Ethel Hedgeman, 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 Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.

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 chartered (established) and was the first president of Omega Omega, its 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. 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. Lyle demonstrated in her committed life how African-American sororities supported women "to create spheres of influence, authority and power within institutions that traditionally have allowed African Americans and women little formal authority and real power."

Ethel Hedgeman was born in 1887 in St. Louis, Missouri. Throughout her elementary and high school career, Hedgeman attended public schools in St. Louis. In 1904, Hedgeman graduated from Sumner High School with honors. She gained a scholarship to Howard University, considered the top among historically black colleges. Hedgeman demonstrated her ambition and abilities by the scholarship to Howard at a time when only one in three hundred African Americans and 5% of whites of eligible age attended any college.

In 1904, Hedgeman entered Howard University. However, due to illness in her sophomore year, Hedgeman had to take a break from her studies. Throughout college, she belonged to Howard's choir, YWCA, and the Christian Endeavor, as well as participating in drama plays. She was described as lively and charming, despite her delicate health.