UNDERGRADUATE SPOTLIGHT LEADERSHIP
VICTOR L. MATTISON, JR. Junior Grand Vice Polemarch L eadership rarely begins with moment when someone chooses to step forward for the good of others. For Junior Grand Vice Polemarch (JGVP) Victor L. “VJ” Mattison, Jr., that moment came early. “Kappa League was one of the first official titles I ever held,” he recalled. “It was the first time I truly understood what organized leadership looked like.” Serving as vice president of his Kappa League chapter, he quickly learned that leadership was not about control, but about care, ensuring that others met their responsibilities and that the group succeeded together. What struck him most wasn’t the authority of the posi- tion, but the enduring influence of it. “To this day,” he said, “I still have guys from Kappa League reach out to me, and it hits you that leadership leaves ripples long after you’ve moved on.” A native of Mauldin, South Carolina, Brother Victor (VJ) Mattison, Jr. is a Spring 2023 initiate of the Clemson University Chapter, the Kappa Lambda of Kappa Alpha Psi® Fraternity, Inc. A junior Physics major at Clemson titles. More often, it begins with responsibility, that quiet, defining
The newly elected undergraduate members of the Grand Board at the 87th Grand Chapter Meeting.
University, he aspires to become an aero- space systems engineer while leaving a lasting impact within the fraternity. His connection to Kappa runs deep. Before joining the bond, Victor spent years preparing to lead within it. A proud product of Kappa League, he served from his sophomore to senior year of high school, holding positions as Secretary/Treasurer and Vice Presi- dent. During that time, he was named Student of the Year for the Southeast- ern Province Guide Right (2022) and earned a scholarship from the Greenville (SC) Alumni Chapter. His journey began even earlier, in 2014 when he began choreographing the Greenville Alumni Chapter’s Kappa Knight Ball for six con- secutive years. “That experience shaped my sense of responsibility,” he said. “It taught me how influence and impact start long before you wear letters.” For JGVP Mattison, representing Kappa carries a profound sense of purpose. Visibility, he believes, is not privilege, it’s stewardship. “How I define the responsibility of being a
visible ambassador for Kappa Alpha Psi is, or should be, no different from how anyone else defines it,” he said. “We are all one Kappa, and how one man carries himself represents all of us.” Whether on campus, in the community, or in public, JGVP Mattison embraces the idea that representation comes with accountability. “Being a visible ambassa- dor just means people are watching you a little more closely,” he added. “But the standard never changes.” That standard has guided every facet of his leadership, from the dance studio to the fraternity house, and from campus service projects to national leadership platforms. True leadership, Brother Mattison has learned, is not built on isolation but on connection. Through Kappa’s premier leadership initiatives, the Undergraduate Leadership Institute (ULI) and LEAD Kappa Program, he discovered that leadership expands when shared. “One of the biggest lessons I learned was the power of networking,” he said. “Leadership is not
FALL 2025 ♦ THE JOURNAL 37
Made with FlippingBook Ebook Creator