Eliza Pearl Shippen was born on February 2, 1888, and expired on May 17, 1981. She was from Washington D.C. Shippen was one of the 22 founding members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. established at Howard University in Washington D.C. Her family was well known in Washington D.C., where her father was an alumnus of Howard University. Shippen graduated from M Street High School in 1904. Two years later, she graduated from the old Miner Normal School, which later became Miner Teachers College. She graduated first in her senior class and began a career in education as a teacher in the D.C. public schools. In 1912, Dr. Shippen earned a bachelor's degree at Howard University. A year later, she helped found Delta Sigma Theta, a service organization whose aims include education and community development, and which now has more than 700 chapters in the United States and abroad. The organization was founded by Shippen and 21 other female co-founders who were dedicated to public service with an emphasis on programs that target the African American community. Delta Sigma Theta was founded on January 13, 1913. Shippen was among the circle of twenty-two women who gathered in 1912 with the hope of re-organizing AKA, the sorority or organization she defected from. In 1928, Dr. Shippen earned a master's degree in education at Teachers College of Columbia University. In 1944, she earned a doctorate in English literature from the University of Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, she had moved on from the D.C. public schools to Miner Teachers College, where she was dean of women. When Miner became part of D.C. Teachers College, she taught English there until her retirement in 1954. D.C. Teachers College later was merged into the University of the District of Columbia. Dr. Shippen, who lived in Washington until moving to the Manor Care home in the late 1970s, retired as English Professor at the old D.C. Teachers College. After devoting much of her life to education and service to youth, Shippen died at age 93 from pneumonia at the Manor Care nursing home in 1981. Ms. Shippen inspired and empowered many women with her intellect. She was the only Founder to pursue her Ph.D., but over the years, many Deltas have been empowered to seek a Ph.D. Sources Black Greek-letter Organizations in the Twenty-First Century: Our Fight Has ... - Google Books https://books.google.com/books?id=rDzopsSbWAoC&pg=PA88&lpg=PA88&dq=eliza+pearl+shippen&source=bl&ots=1iYwGhituL&sig=ACfU3U2aMb2-Bk9IoeKFfuSInPAaOcCAUA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj-teLyv4TqAhXQSjABHYrUBoQQ6AEwB3oECA8QAQ#v=onepage&q=eliza%20pearl%20shippen&f=false Washington Post https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1981/05/21/eliza-shippen-93-professor-at-dc-teachers-college-dies/b3f8576f-29af-4221-bb3f-df73340e05cb/ 22 FOUNDERS - OG of DST https://sites.google.com/a/uah.edu/ogdst/22Founders Delta Sigma Theta https://www.deltasigmatheta.org/founders