March 15, 1924, Volume 5, Part 6

The following commentary was provided by Brother Rick Jenkins, Metagenes Alumnus and WGS Emeritus. It was too good not to post on its own merit.

A early mention of women in the profession is on Page 4 (Delegates Remember). Marion Petri and Gladys Bruillard found an interiors studio in Minneapolis. Marion and Gladys are members of the Beta Chapter of Alpha Alpha Gamma national architectural sorority. So is Teresa Snure, who is engaged to Bro. Frank R. Root of Mnesicles (page 11).

IIRC, these are the first mentions of Alpha Alpha Gamma in the Archi. Founded in 1922 Alpha Alpha Gamma was a professional sorority with 10 student chapters prior to WWII. Several were at schools with APX chapters. (Look for mention of expansion to Illinois in October 1924). The Archi will occasionally note joint events between chapters or engagements until the 1930s. In 1934 the alumnae of the sorority formed the Association of Women in Architecture (AWA), and in 1948 AAG reorganized as its undergraduate branch. The national organization disbanded in 1964. (See http://www.awa-la.org/history.php for more info.)

Alpha Rho Chi was not the only national architecture fraternity of this era. Scarab was also a member of Professional Interfraternity Conference for architecture. Triangle Fraternity would soon start recruiting architects to join their engineers. Besides the nationals, there were countless local architecture fraternities. (Some became APX chapters; this issue tells of plans to convert the local Delta Club to Dinocrates Chapter.) Alpha Alpha Gamma adds another, distaff element to this mix.

However from today's vantage point, AAG seems the strangest of the mix. It was not a competitor to APX, yet so many of their sisters could have been made our good brothers just a half-century later.