The fraternity previously known as Kappa Kappa Kappa, or Tri-Kap, has changed its name to the Kappa Pi Kappa Society, according to a May 18 statement obtained by The Dartmouth. The statement noted that the new name was selected through a multi-year process of engagement with over 1,000 undergraduate and alumni members of the fraternity and was approved unanimously by its board of directors.
The release noted that the Kappa Kappa Kappa society was founded on July 13, 1842, making it the oldest local fraternity in the United States. The organization was founded on principles of “democracy, loyalty, and service,” according to the release and predated the founding of the Ku Klux Klan by 25 years.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, the Ku Klux Klan was founded in the 1860s as a white supremacist group and maintains a long history of violence and hate crimes against Black Americans, as well as Jewish and LGBTQ+ communities. The Kappa Pi Kappa press release noted that the “hate group” was formed with values “diametrically opposed to those of Tri-Kap,” leading to discomfort among brothers and in the Dartmouth community — which the name change seeks to address.
Kappa Pi Kappa president Jack Hargrove ’23 noted that the undergraduate members of the fraternity are “excited” to continue their Dartmouth experience as brothers of Kappa Pi Kappa.
“We are proud to have worked closely with the Society’s Board of Directors to help build consensus across the entire Brotherhood in favor of a name that will help us promote the core values of our organization and the interests of Dartmouth College,” Hargrove wrote in the statement.
Jack Hargrove ’23 is a member of The Dartmouth arts staff.
