50 years after the school first admitted races other than white, the University of Alabama (UA) is now integrating, for the first time, its historically white sororities, the Associated Press reported.
UA president Judy Bonner, the school's first female president, confirmed Friday 11 black students and three others from a minority group received bids or invitations to join historically white sororities. Of those 14, four black students and two of other racial backgrounds accepted.
"I am confident that we will achieve our objective of a Greek system that is inclusive, accessible and welcoming to students of all races and ethnicities," Bonner said in a statement, adding she expects those racial integration figures to rise. "We will not tolerate anything less."
Bonner recently changed the standard with which UA's sororities recruited pledges by raising the total number of members allowed. Additionally, sororities can now add new members at any point during the academic year. These changes, she said will encourage racial diversity.
UA is celebrating their 50-year anniversary of when they first racially integrated their school. The issue came to light when the student newspaper the Crimson White reported certain sororities turned away two students from joining because they are black.
Bonner quickly responded by acknowledging her school's Greek-letter groups are segregated and she would work to integrate them.
On Wednesday, hundreds marched on UA grounds to protest segregation in UA's Greek-letter groups. The school's Faculty Senate expressed distaste for the segregation during a meeting last week. After the meeting, UA Faculty Senate president Steve Miller announced the march would take place the next day. A group of several hundred, including faculty, professors and students, pledged to segregated Greek groups and not, walked from the library to the administration building, where Bonner's office is located.
The group stood behind a sign that read, "Last stand in the schoolhouse door." It is in reference to when then-Gov. George C. Wallace made his famous stand in the schoolhouse door to protest integration at UA. He backed down at the pressure of national attention and from President John F. Kennedy.
