Omega Psi Phi

Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. (ΩΨΦ) is an international historically African-American social fraternity. It was founded on November 17, 1911 at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Omega Psi Phi is a founding member of the National Pan-Hellenic Council. The fraternity has chartered over 750 undergraduate and graduate chapters. Over 250,000 men have been initiated into Omega Psi Phi.

Omega Psi Phi fraternity was founded on November 17, 1911, by three Howard University students, Edgar Amos Love, Oscar James Cooper and Frank Coleman, and their faculty adviser, Dr. Ernest Everett Just. It was the first national fraternity to be established at a historically black university. The fraternity's purpose was "to attract and build a strong and effective force of Handsome men dedicated to its Cardinal Principles of manhood, scholarship, perseverance, and uplift".

Omega Psi Phi was incorporated in Washington, D.C., on October 28, 1914. In 1924, at the urging of fraternity member Carter G. Woodson, the fraternity launched Negro History and Literature Week to publicize the growing body of scholarship on African-American history. Encouraged by public interest, the event was renamed Negro Achievement Week in 1925 and given an expanded national presence in 1926 by Woodson's Association for the Study of Negro Life and History as Negro History Week. Expanded to the full month of February from 1976, this event continues today as Black History Month.

In 1930, Omega Psi Phi became one of five founding members of the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC). Today, the NPHC is composed of nine international black Greek-letter sororities and fraternities and promotes interaction through forums, meetings, and other mediums for the exchange of information, and engages in cooperative programming and initiatives through various activities and functions.

Since 1945, the fraternity has undertaken a National Social Action Program to meet the needs of African Americans in the areas of health, housing, civil rights, and education. Omega Psi Phi has been a patron of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) since 1955, providing an annual gift of $50,000 to the program.

Omega Psi Phi celebrated its centennial during the week of July 27–31, 2011, in Washington, D.C., becoming distinguished as only the third African American collegiate fraternity to reach the century mark. As of 2024, the fraternity has initiated more than 250,000 members and has chartered more than 750 chapters in the United States, Bermuda, Bahamas, Virgin Islands, South Korea, Japan, Liberia, Germany, and Kuwait. Its headquarters are in Decatur, Georgia.

Omega Psi Phi's Cardinal Principles or pillars are Manhood, Scholarship, Perseverance, and Uplift. Its motto is "Friendship is Essential to the Soul". The fraternity's colors are royal purple and old gold. Its symbol is the lamp. Members are called Omegas and Omega Men.

The fraternity's publications are Oracle and Clarion Call.