Kappa Psi

Kappa Psi Pharmaceutical Fraternity, Incorporated (ΚΨ) is the largest professional pharmaceutical fraternity in the world with more than 6,000 student members and more than 87,000 alumni members. It was founded in 1879 at Russell Military Academy in New Haven, Connecticut as the Society of Kappa Psi.

History
The Society of Kappa Psi was founded on May 30, 1879, at the Russell Military Academy in New Haven, Connecticut as an academic society for college preparatory schools. The society's founder was Franklin Harvey Smith. An additional chapter was formed at the Cheshire Military Academy in Cheshire, Connecticut in 1879. While these two early units failed, another chapter formed at Hillhouse Academy of New Haven, Connecticut in 1894. Hillhouse too, died as a chapter on 30 June 1895.

However, the founders of these chapters, many having graduated and entered college, sought a collegiate level re-establishment of the order. Representatives, now alumni without an active chapter from these three early prep school chapters formed a grand chapter called Alpha chapter on December 10, 1895, deeming it an essential step for rebuilding the fraternity and for expansion nationally. These men, reforming the organization as Kappa Psi Fraternity chartered its first collegiate chapter, Delta, at the University of Maryland in the fall of 1898 when former members of the Hillhouse chapter entered that school in the study of medicine. Others, who had opted for the study of pharmacy, formed a Gamma chapter at the College of Pharmacy at Columbia University in that same year. A third group of advancing students formed the Beta chapter at the University College of Medicine in Richmond, Virginia, in 1900.

By 1902 the young organization had formed six chapters and already held four conventions. In 1903 the Society incorporated as a national fraternity, operating jointly as both a medical and pharmaceutical fraternity. On November 17, 1917, the fraternity merged with Delta Omicron Alpha fraternity. It merged with Phi Delta on January 26, 1918.

By mutual agreement, in 1924, the fraternity split into Kappa Psi, which retained its pharmacy component, and Theta Kappa Psi, which became strictly a medical fraternity. Theta Kappa Psi later struggled; it would go on to merge with Phi Beta Pi in 1961, but this union was again dissolved in 1992. A single chapter carries on the Theta Kappa Psi name today.

Kappa Psi Fraternity would later incorporate under the name of Kappa Psi Pharmaceutical Fraternity. In 1977, Kappa Psi first welcomed women into the fraternity.

Today there are 110 active collegiate chapters and 75 graduate chapters across the United States, Canada, and the Bahamas, and over 80,000 people have been initiated into the fraternity since its inception. The Central Office of Kappa Psi is located in Richardson, Texas.

Provinces
Nationally, Kappa Psi is divided into provinces, which the majority meet biannually. Historically, the provinces had geographic names that have changed over the years. The provinces were reorganized and renamed numbers in June 2011. Following are the current provinces:

Chapters
, Kappa Psi consists of 111 collegiate and 75 graduate chapters organized into 11 regional provinces.

Grand Council Convention
Kappa Psi holds its international convention biennially. The 61st Grand Council Convention will be held at the Cleveland Renaissance Hotel July 24-28, 2024.

Below is a list of the Grand Council Conventions (along with the year, location, and number of attendees) dating back to the first Grand Council Convention in 1900 in New York City.


 * 1) The 22nd and 23rd Grand Council Conventions were postponed due to WWII.
 * 2) The 1932 (18th), 1936 (19th), and 1940 (20th) Grand Council Conventions were cancelled.
 * 3) The 15th and 16th Grand Council Conventions were held in three separate regional locations with the same business discussed at each.
 * 4) The 60th Grand Council Convention was delayed 1 year due (from 2021 to 2022) due to the global coronavirus pandemic.