The National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) is a collaborative umbrella organization composed of historically African American fraternities and sororities. The nine NPHC Greek-letter organizations are sometimes collectively referred to as the "Divine Nine (D9)". The member/partner organizations have not formally adopted nor recommended the use of this term to describe their collaborative grouping. The NPHC was formed as a permanent organization on May 10, 1930, on the campus of Howard University, in Washington, D.C. with Matthew W. Bullock as the active Chairman and B. Beatrix Scott as Vice-Chairman. NPHC was incorporated under the laws of the State of Illinois in 1937 and is headquartered in Decatur, Georgia.

On Feb. 8, 1986, figure skater Debi Thomas became the first African-American to win the Women's Singles of the U.S. National Figure Skating Championship competition while studying as a pre-med student at Stanford University. She was the first Black woman to win a national figure skating title. Thomas also earned the distinction of becoming the first African-American to win a medal in any Winter Olympic sport when she won a bronze medal in the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary.