Sigma Alpha Omega

What Sigma Alpha Omega does

Sigma Alpha Omega (ΣΑΩ) is a non-profit Christian sorority founded in January 1998 at North Carolina State University, where it was formed by the Beta Chapter of the Chi Alpha Omega fraternity as a sister organization. It was officially recognized as a national non-profit under North Carolina law in June 2004 and is governed by a National Board of Trustees. The organization serves Christian college women seeking faith-based sorority membership, providing structured fellowship through campus chapters, Bible studies, prayer networks, service projects, and an annual national convention.

The business operates a chapter-based membership model spanning 20 active chapters across 15+ US states (with 45+ chapters historically established and many inactive due to COVID-era disruption). Core products include the MySAO.org member portal, a Prayer Portal for spiritual support, the Dove Love monthly email publication (relaunched January 2026 from a quarterly magazine), the Sigma Alpha Omega Foundation for charitable giving, a National Awards Program, an Approved Vendor marketplace, and a Shopify-based merchandise store (MySAOStore). The technology stack is entirely off-the-shelf — Wix for the website, Shopify/Spring for commerce, Google Forms/Meets for forms and virtual events, Blogger for the Lily Letters devotional library — with no proprietary platforms, AI capabilities, or technical IP beyond registered trademarks on the brand name, Greek letters, slogan, and crest.

Revenue is not publicly disclosed and consists of national membership dues, candidate/colony chartering fees ($60 candidate dues + $22 insurance + $20 filing fee per applicant), chapter-set local dues, merchandise sales, and Foundation donations. Distribution is exclusively direct via campus chapters and a formal Start a Chapter program administered through the VP of Expansion. The customer base is highly distributed across individual collegiate members with no enterprise concentration, and the go-to-market motion is community-led and relational rather than performance-marketing driven.

Name

Sigma Alpha Omega

Legal name

Sigma Alpha Omega Christian Sorority, Inc.

Website

https://sigmaalphaomega.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Sigma Alpha Omega is a non-profit Christian sorority founded in 1998, operating ~20 active campus chapters across 15+ US states to provide faith-based sisterhood, spiritual development, and community service for Christian college women through a chapter-based membership model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Faith-Based Sorority / Greek Life Organization

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDALAOAA

Alumni Relations & Alumni Engagement Programs

Education/Student Services & Campus Operations/Alumni Relations, Development & Campus Community Engagement

SECONDARYEDALAOAH

Volunteer Management & Alumni Leadership Programs

Education/Student Services & Campus Operations/Alumni Relations, Development & Campus Community Engagement

SECONDARYBPAMABAK

Student & Alumni Communities

Business & Public Services/Web, Mobile & Digital Platforms/Social Networks & Online Communities

SECONDARYEDALAOAM

Alumni Benefits, Membership & Affinity Programs

Education/Student Services & Campus Operations/Alumni Relations, Development & Campus Community Engagement

Keywords

• Christian sorority membership
• Faith-based Greek life
• Women's college fellowship
• Sorority chapter expansion
• Christian student organization

Headquarters

HQ city

Trussville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. National Membership Dues: Chapters are charged general national dues. Founding sisters pay a one-time non-refundable candidate dues of $60 and insurance cost of $22 during the colony-to-chartering process. Chapters are also required to file for non-profit 501(c)(7) social club status.
2. Chapter Dues: Individual chapters may set their own local dues in addition to national dues.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Sigma Alpha Omega is a non-profit Christian sorority offering membership-based sisterhood to college women who profess faith in Jesus Christ. Members join campus chapters and gain access to faith-based fellowship (Bible studies, prayer walks, worship events), leadership development, service opportunities centered on ovarian cancer awareness, and lifelong alumnae networking. The organization is structured around a national non-profit entity with a Board of Trustees, affiliated charitable foundation, and 20 active chapters across 15+ US states.

Product overview

Sigma Alpha Omega is a non-profit Christian Sorority offering membership-based services including the MySAO.org member portal, Dove Love monthly email publication, an Annual Convention, the Sigma Alpha Omega Foundation for charitable giving, Prayer Portal for spiritual support, chapter establishment programs, national awards recognition, and an approved vendor marketplace. The organization operates primarily through digital platforms including Google Forms, Google Meets, and a Shopify-based merchandise store.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Sigma Alpha Omega Christian Sorority Membership

Quantifiable outcome

• Ovarian Cancer Awareness National Philanthropy: raised $2,227 during Crunch-A-Thon 2021 with Beta Mu chapter at UT raising nearly $1,000 of that total

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance (OCRA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAO has worked alongside Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance to promote education and awareness efforts for their national philanthropy. In summer 2016, three SAO representatives attended the OCRA Convention in Washington, D.C., which inspired the creation of the Crunch-A-Thon fundraiser.
• NormaLeah Ovarian Cancer InitiativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAO partners with NormaLeah for ovarian cancer awareness. The Crunch-A-Thon 2021 raised $2,227 with proceeds going to NormaLeah. NormaLeah provides free resources for SAO's awareness efforts.
• Teal DivacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAO has worked with Teal Diva to promote education and awareness. Shannon Routh, founder of Teal Diva, was recognized as Outstanding Non-Sister at SAO Convention 2011 and became an honorary member of SAO for her service in ovarian cancer awareness.
• T.E.A.L. Walk/Run/Ride (Tell Every Amazing Lady About Ovarian Cancer)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAO participates in the national T.E.A.L. Walk/Run/Ride as an organization to support ovarian cancer awareness.
• Teal ToesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAO references Teal Toes as a resource partner for ovarian cancer awareness, providing free resources for awareness efforts.
• Ovarian Cancer Coalition of Central South CarolinaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal partner supporting SAO's ovarian cancer awareness efforts in the South Carolina region.
• Sigma Alpha Omega Foundation (Sisters by Grace)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe official charitable foundation for SAO, launched June 1, 2013 under original name Sisters By Grace. Renamed February 2021 to The Sigma Alpha Omega Foundation. Provides funds and opportunities for sister development in academics, leadership, spiritual growth, and mission work. Accepts online and postal donations.
• Approved Vendors (ALyonsPride, Jane's Daughter, Amanda Warfield, NormaLeah, ScrapTheRules, Live It Out!, Lind Lettering & Design, The Little Lemonaid Shop)minorOthersSAO maintains an approved vendor list including sister-owned small businesses and donors. Sisters are encouraged to support other sisters and small businesses. Donors to the Ovarian Cancer Awareness Raffle are added to the approved vendor list.
• Chi Alpha Omega Christian FraternitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAO was formed as a sister sorority to Chi Alpha Omega fraternity, which was founded in Spring 1987 at East Carolina University. SAO was formed in January 1998 when active brothers of the Beta Chapter of Chi Alpha Omega at NC State voted to create the sorority.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves13 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Alpha Gamma Omega: A national Christian fraternity/sorority organization with chapters on US college campuses targeting Christian students. Closely comparable mission, values-based membership criteria, and chapter expansion model to SAO.
• Sigma Phi Lambda: A Christian sorority for college women seeking Christ-centered sisterhood and leadership development. Direct competitor in the faith-based sorority category, recruiting from the same pool of Christian undergraduate women on US college campuses.
• Alpha Delta Tau: A historically Jewish sorority operating in the values-based / faith-affiliated Greek life niche. Comparable as a culturally/religiously identified sorority pursuing a defined demographic of college women with identity-based programming.
• Beta Upsilon Chi: A national Christian fraternity that, like Chi Alpha Omega, serves as a faith-based Greek organization for Christian college men. Comparable as an adjacent faith-affiliated Greek organization sharing values-based programming and Christian identity as a membership criterion.
• Chi Alpha Omega Christian Fraternity: SAO's brother fraternity, founded in 1987 at East Carolina University, with which SAO was formed in 1998 at NC State. Operates as the parallel male counterpart in the same faith-based Greek life niche, sharing organizational DNA, target demographic (college Christians), and chapter structure.

Emerging players

• Sigma Delta Tau: A sorority historically rooted in Jewish values and identity, now inclusive of women of all backgrounds. Comparable as an identity/values-driven sorority but with broader inclusion and longer operating history than SAO.

Others

• College Faith-Based Campus Ministries (e.g., Cru, InterVarsity): InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and Cru are major interdenominational Christian campus ministries reaching the same pool of Christian college students. Comparable as faith-based community organizers on US campuses, but they are ministries rather than sororities and represent an adjacent ecosystem for SAO's target demographic.
• Sigma Alpha Mu Foundation: Charitable foundation affiliated with a Jewish fraternity; structurally analogous to the Sigma Alpha Omega Foundation as a 501(c)(3)-style giving vehicle supporting sister/brother development, scholarships, and mission-aligned programming.

Broad incumbents

• National Pan-Hellenic Council Sororities (e.g., Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta): The nine historically Black Greek-letter sororities and fraternities form the broader Greek life establishment that SAO's niche Christian sorority sits within. Comparable as campus sorority operators with national infrastructure, conventions, and alumnae networks, but serving fundamentally different demographic and identity-based missions.
• National Panhellenic Conference Sororities (e.g., Alpha Chi Omega, Kappa Alpha Theta): The 26-member National Panhellenic Conference represents the largest sorority ecosystem in North America. SAO operates as a non-NPC faith-based alternative within this broader sorority market, competing for the same pool of women seeking sorority membership but with a distinctive Christian focus.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/SAO4Christ
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sigma-alpha-omega-christian-sorority-inc/about
• Instagraminstagram.com/sao4christ
• TikToktiktok.com/@sao4christ
• Pinterestpinterest.com/SAODoveLove/boards

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sigma Alpha Omega