NATIONAL NEWS: INTERVIEW WITH THE GRAND POLEMARCH
With his focus on “integrity, trans- parency and respect to further create an all-inclusive” organization, he could have just as easily been talking about the approach he’s taking with Kappa Alpha Psi ® . As it relates to transparency in Kap- pa, the Grand Polemarch immediately created a Facebook page and directly communicates with brothers through it. “I love talking to the brothers every day. It gives them a voice and I am happy for that. I want to continue it and I am very comfortable with it, said the Grand Polemarch. “The brothers have been very constructive, and I applaud it.” Brother Shelton grew up in St. Louis in an all-Black neighborhood in a four- room flat with nine other siblings along with his parents. “You could get kind of sick of being around people unless you went outside and hung out,” said the Grand Polemarch. “It instilled a huge sense of family and we had to rely on each other. I developed socialization skills quickly and learned how to over- come a lot of obstacles. I thank God for it.” Sports was about the only thing one could do due to avoid the cramped quarters. “Everyone played baseball and football. I chose basketball to do something different. I got to be pretty good at it.” Though his mother never finished high school but his dad did, college was never a question. “They always understood that education was the key to opening doors to bigger and brighter things. The only question was how to pay for it,” said Brother Shelton. "I have always been motivated by family, faith and life's challenges. This was no different." Early Years
scholarships. A basketball scholarship was Brother Shelton’s ticket to the University of Kansas (KU). He was a shooting guard. “I never saw a jump shot I didn’t like,” he said. Shelton was a part of the Jayhawks team that went to the Final Four in 1974. They were 23-7
He received his legal education at Saint Louis University School of Law, where he clerked for a U.S. District Judge. He earned an MBA from Wash- ington University. He also married the love of his life D’Anne in 1980 after his first year of law school. They have three daughters.
Former Kansas coach Ted Owens greeted former players and coaches during a halftime celebration of 120 years of Kansas basketball at Allen Fieldhouse. Grand Polemarch Shelton is behind him.
Professional Life
A former special chief counsel for the Missouri Attorney General’s Office, he helped secure a $6.7 billion tobacco settlement for the state. Before retiring, he handled groundbreaking intellectual property and antitrust work at agribusi- ness giant Monsanto for much of two decades. He also served as general counsel of the Monsanto Citizenship Fund. Before that, he headed the tort litigation department at Ameren Union Electric Company for 14 years after working at a private law firm. His list of honors and accolades include recognitions from entities rang- ing from legal groups to magazines. He’s been named among 10 outstanding St. Louisans by the Junior Chamber of Commerce and one of 100 most inspir- ing St. Louisans by the NAACP. De- clared a “Legal Legend” by the St. Louis Argus, he also has been recognized as one of the best corporate in-house lawyers in the state by Missouri Lawyers Media. He was recently inducted in the Order of the Fleur de Lis Hall of Fame
(13-1 conference) that year. Brother Shelton was captain of the team.
There were three members of Kappa Alpha Psi on the Jayhawks team at the time that Brother Shelton joined. During the Final Four in Greensboro, North Carolina, he saw how the brothers were “rocking it” at an event in Green Grove, NC, sponsored by the Alpha Nu Chap- ter, and he agreed with his teammates that he would indeed pledge. Brother Shelton served as Dean of Pledges and Chapter Polemarch of the Mu of Kappa Alpha Psi. Due to a sports injury, Brother Shel- ton did not pursue a career in the NBA. Instead, after graduation from KU, he decided to go to law school. “In my life, I saw that the folks who made the most change in society were either lawyers or preachers.”
College Life
His sisters received academic schol- arships. His brothers received athletic
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