Sa turday evening African American sororities and fraternities of the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) from Pennsylvania, Indiana and nearby Ohio universities stepped their way onto campus for Xavier’s NPHC’s first step show, “The Essence of…Culture: NPHC Step Show.”
“We did this to show a culture that exists on Xavier’s campus…Stepping is not about competition, but about coming together in unison…showing their dedication
to their organization and community,” Brandon Hopper, vice president of NPHC, said. The prize was $1000 for the
winning sorority and fraternity. The winners were Gamma Nu Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated from Indiana University and the Delta Xi Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated from Central State University. The other fraternity that competed was the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Incorporated’s Epsilon Kappa
Chapter from the University of Pittsburgh. “This was a good end to a dynamic week. We kicked off with service, great academic programs and faith and cultural awareness programs,” Chynna Stubbs, the president of NPHC, said.
This is one of the many NPHC programs. The past week NPHC held “The Essence of… Week” with programs concerning the Essence of…service, remembrance,
consciousness, antiquity, faith, truth and culture. “We appreciate who came out, but we’re not limited to stepping,”
Brandon Hoff, the treasurer of NPHC, said. Comedian Finesse Mitchell hosted the show and kept the audience chuckling while the judges evaluated. He is also a part
of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity, Incorporated and is known as
Chyna’s father on Disney’s television show “A.N.T. Farm.” The judges were all a part of different sororities and fraternities of the Divine Nine and included some Xavier alumni. There was also some background music provided
by the local DJ Magnificent. “To almost have a full house, it is great to see people from University of Cincinnati,
Columbus and Dayton,” Hopper said. There are plans to do the step show again next year and make it an annual event. NPHC hopes next year more students of all cultures
will attend.