Photo courtesy of Aisata Diallo ’26
Xi Nu is MHC’s chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha, a historically Black sorority promoting community.
BY ELIZABETH MURRAY ’26
FEATURES EDITOR
One of the tenets of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority is acts of service, with chapters and members regularly conducting service projects. This is where Purses with a Purpose was born, a hygiene drive run by the Xi Nu chapter here at Mount Holyoke College with donations going to Safe Passage in Northampton. Safe Passage is an organization that serves survivors of domestic violence by providing resources like counseling, support groups and prevention training activities.
Two collections were held for the drive, the first on Feb. 4 and the second on March 6, in the entrance of the Dining Commons. The first round of collections brought in 70 items that were donated to Safe Passage, and the second collection yielded an even higher number of items, donated mainly by students. “It was pretty impressive. People are so generous on campus and they really care … it was amazing that students are putting out their money to help us with our fundraiser and make sure we're taking care of our communities,” Chapter Historian Mooka Dharmapalan ’26 said.
“I feel like Purses With a Purpose has really allowed us to connect with the women community,” member Mikailah Dukes ’27 stated.
Members of the Xi Nu chapter are passionate about reproductive justice and education. The AKA sorority has five initiatives: “Empower our families, build our economic wealth, enhance our environment, advocate for social justice and uplift our local community,” according to the AKA website
“Reproductive justice does fall under the [initiative] uplift our local community, and I think people try to make it this really taboo thing and it shouldn't be. So I think that's why we're very geared towards reproductive justice,” chapter member Yeslee Nerris ’26 said. The chapter has held other events surrounding sexual health and reproductive justice in the past, such as workshops and group discussions.
“Each one of our chapter members are leading one of those initiatives. … Line sister Caroline led a safe sex workshop where she researched and collected a lot of items from Planned Parenthood so we could provide those items to students on campus, which were like condoms, dental dams [and] Plan B [pills], which are increasing in price. So giving them out for free is a really great resource. We got to do a full sex talk and also have an open conversation about consent, about safe words and the nitty gritty of things that you don't learn in sex-ed in high school,” Dharmapalan said.
AKA has a long history here at Mount Holyoke. The Xi Nu chapter was founded in 1983, and has continued to serve as an empowering space of community for Black students and students of color at a predominately white institution like Mount Holyoke. There are some challenges that come with this, especially compared to larger institutions where Greek life is more common or historically Black institutions that have a large Divine Nine presence.
Despite these challenges the Xi Nu chapter remains strong, “We're still [having] just as much impact and I love our line sister[s] so much. We have a really great bond,” Dharmapalan said. This academic year, the chapter had 4 new line sisters who are continuing their service work. Since 2020, the chapter has had some difficulty recruiting, but they still continue the AKA legacy. Looking ahead, Xi Nu is planning more service projects and connecting with other Divine Nine chapters in the region.
“Seeing what the chapter has done… I am personally so proud,” AKA graduate chapter member Claire Clunis ’25 said.
Angelina Godinez ’28 contributed fact-checking
