LOOK BACK KAPPA HISTORY
bureau to evaluate and discuss various options for conducting an in-person national convention. The Fraternity considered options that included potentially moving the Grand Chapter Meeting to a date later in 2021. The Grand Board of Directors elected not to cancel or delay the event and opted to move forward with a hybrid in-per- son/virtual Conclave in Phoenix with limited onsite presence. The majority of the Conclave activities were con- ducted virtually. All registrations for the Phoenix Conclave were conducted on a website with delegates given access to a secure web portal to the 85th Grand Chapter. The Conclave portal allowed registered delegates to access virtual rooms to caucus, view, and purchase Fraternity paraphernalia from licensed vendors, vote in Grand Chapter candidate
“It was a historic meeting, if for nothing else than the period in which it was convened and the circumstances which brought about the cancellation of the scheduled conclave in Columbus, OH, at Christmas time. But not a single brother complained because the usual four-day Grand Chapter Meeting could not be held or because travel had to be curtailed in order to save rubber and gas.” - G. James Fleming Former Editor, The Kappa Alpha Psi Journal,
32nd Grand Chapter Meeting, December 1942 Emergency Session, Chicago, IL.
against flagrant racial discrimination when informed of its existence. The Wabash YMCA, located in Chicago’s southside Bronzeville neighborhood, was the venue of all business sessions, while the Church of the Good Shepherd hosted the Public Meeting. Sunday evening, members and their guests enjoyed a midnight cruise and dance aboard the S.S. Florida. Members and their guests also attended a dance at the Savoy Ball- room on Monday evening. The Closed Banquet and formal ball were held the following two evenings at the Univer- sity of Chicago’s International House. Sigma Gamma Rho and Phi Delta Kappa Sororities co-hosted a social event at Bacon’s Casino. Emergency Grand Board of Directors Session 32nd Grand Chapter Meeting, Chicago, IL December 11-12, 1942 Due to World War II, the originally scheduled 32nd Grand Chapter Meet- ing in Columbus, OH, was replaced with an emergency Grand Board of Directors session in Chicago, IL. Grand Polemarch Carl R. Johnson called for the Grand Board of Direc- tors members and other key national
fraternity officials to meet at the Wabash Avenue YMCA in Chicago.
Virtual Conclave 85th Grand Chapter Meeting,
Phoenix, AZ July 14-17, 2021 Grand Polemarch Reuben A. Shel- ton, III, moved the fraternity into unchartered waters as Kappa Alpha
elections, and participate in business meetings. A limited number of Grand Board of Directors members, including Grand Polemarch Shelton, traveled onsite to Phoenix, Ari- zona. The Fraternity canceled several traditional activities and events, such as the Closed Ban- quet, for this virtual Conclave.
Psi organized and implemented a vir- tual Grand Chapter Meeting for the first time in its history. The 85th Grand Chapter Meeting was held July 14-17, 2021, themed “Achievement Then, Achievement Now, Achievement Forever.” Due to COVID-19 safety concerns, the National Meeting Planning team, led by Kevin J. “KJ” Johnson, the Grand Board of Directors, and International Headquarters, frequently consulted with the Phoenix convention and travel
UNIQUE CONCLAVE VENUES BEYOND THE MIDWEST (1939-1947) A Trip South 29th Grand Chapter Meeting, San Antonio, TX December 27-30, 1939 Ten years after the Durham, NC Conclave, the Grand Chapter Meeting returned to the South for the 29th
FALL 2024 ♦ THE JOURNAL 21
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