Adelphic Club

Adelphic Club is a secret society and eating club for sorority seniors at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina. Founded in 1977, it is the only secret society for women at the University.
History
On April 23, 1977 a group of twelve sorority seniors at East Carolina University formed a group known colloquially as "The Thursday Night Club." An eating club comprised of sorority seniors, this organization was formed to combat inter-sorority rivalries and dissent, and to establish better cooperation amongst women of various Greek-letter organizations on the campus. The twelve members represented all seven sororities on the campus at the time.
"The Thursday Night Club" was initially established as an eating club where sorority seniors could take meals and engage in friendly social discourse. Memberships were offered to senior sorority members only with a GPA of 3.3 or higher. In 1984, the eating club voted to restrict membership to sorority seniors "who were formally invited." This created some tension within the sorority community at East Carolina University as several seniors were precluded from membership. In 1986 a formal agreement was drafted by the organization to "include women from all sororities at East Carolina University by a process of lot and vote." That is to say, members drew lots for potential members and voted on each one, leaving the selection of members to chance. Likewise, this drew controversy as highly qualified candidates were omitted from the process. The following year, in 1987, "The Thursday Night Club" was disbanded.
In 1990, four seniors of Alpha Delta Pi sorority at East Carolina University decided to revive the defunct club under the new name "Adelphic Club." The name was selected due to the fact that Alpha Delta Pi's original name was "Adelphean Society." Five women from each sorority on campus were invited to join the new club by the four senior founders. As such, the tradition of selecting five seniors from each sorority on campus continues to this day, making the total members selected each year to be 45.
A house was purchased by the organization in 1998 for social functions and meetings. No persons live in the house, except for a full-time chef hired to cook meals. A scholarship fund was established in 2001 for East Carolina University freshman who come from underprivileged families. The scholarship is known as the "Adelphic Club Grant."
Membership
Membership is kept secret during the member's senior year. At graduation, members wear a medal engraved with the club's name and the lyre (the symbol of the organization). After this time, members may formally announce their membership in the organization. The society selects junior women for membership on April 23 of each year, regardless of what day of the week this falls under. This keeps in line with the tradition of "The Thursday Night Club" being founded on April 23, 1977. The Club elects a President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Historian, Membership Chair, House, Chair, and Scholarship Chair each fall for the coming year. Members are required to have a 3.3 cumulative GPA at the end of their junior year to be eligible for membership.
As the society is largely an eating club, members may take dinner every evening of the week in the house. Unlike the male-only secret societies at East Carolina University, members are expected to pay significant dues their senior year of membership. In years past, this has ranged from $800-$1100 a year, covering mostly the cost of food and social functions. Thursday evenings are the most festive of all dinners with singing, a formal meeting, and rituals. This is a reminder to the members of "the night when our founders met to convivially celebrate their sisterhood and friendship."
Each November, the Adelphic Club hosts a formal known as "Lyre Ball" for members and invited guests.
Notable Members
*Emily Procter - 1991 - Actress
*Monica Palumbo - 2003 - Miss North Carolina 2001
See Also
* Collegiate secret societies in North America
* Secret society

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