The first and only Muslim sorority in the United States is now coming to the University of Texas at Austin.
This week, Mu Delta Alpha is searching for its first class of new members. The chapter's president said they're creating a sisterhood with a goal of shattering stereotypes.
"There's this narrative that consistently comes up," said Mu Delta Alpha President Maria Haseen. "Many believe for us to be educated, or for us to be successful, it's somehow an oddity. I don't find that true at all. I find that there are successful women in all types of careers. It's really important for us as Muslim girls to connect with those people."
Mu Delta Alpha is a professional sorority, meaning their focus is to empower young Muslim women to pursue their career goals and make history. They'll be providing a platform for Muslim women to interact with other professionals.
"I feel like that's very, very important for us and we can eventually be one of those ladies," said Mu Delta Alpha Vice President Aya Akid.
"For example, I want to be a surgeon and I might want to find other Muslim women who are surgeons," Haseen said.
They're empowering through education.
"Not so that we can show the rest of the world, 'Hey we're actually more educated than we are because we're not here to prove anything to anyone,'" Haseen said. "We want to provide opportunities for other people to reach that that potential."
Mu Delta Alpha's core values are empowerment, education, professionalism and sisterhood.
In the future, they're hoping to fund STEM programs for girls in Africa, create a young Muslimah Mentorship Summit and philanthropic project.
To learn more about Mu Delta Alpha, go here.