NASSAU CELEBRATION FOUNDERS’ DAY 17TH BIENNIAL NATIONAL THE BAHAMAS JANUARY 7-11, 2026
NATIONAL FOUNDERS’ DAY THE BAHAMAS
Grand Polemarch Jimmy McMikle ensured that all 200 undergraduates could participate in this leadership development experience at no personal cost—an investment in the future leadership of Kappa Alpha Psi.
T he voices rose before the sun did. Beyond the glass walls of the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar, the Caribbean island was still that in-be- tween shade of ink and blue; inside, a sea of men stood shoulder to shoulder, baritones and tenors braiding into an anthem they knew by heart. “In the year 1911, when the arbutus blooms in the spring … Kappa Alpha Psi was founded, and of its praises we sing.” Outside, palm fronds whispered in the morning breeze; inside, crimson or cream polos popped under ball- room chandeliers. This was neither a homecoming nor a nostalgic retreat. It was the 17th Biennial National Found- ers’ Day Celebration and Leadership Summit—a deliberately high-stakes, high-expectation boot camp in par- adise. Held in Nassau, The Bahamas, and designed by the 35th Administra- tion of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc.
“... UNLESS YOU WORK IN A CORPORATE SPACE ... MOST PEOPLE NEVER HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPERIENCE THIS LEVEL OF TRAINING ...”
- Jimmy McMikle, Grand Polemarch
In a world defined by whiplash— world reordering and political shocks, AI leaps and economic anxiety— Grand Polemarch Jimmy McMikle had set a singular goal: to take the men of Kappa Alpha Psi, from undergraduate students to silver-haired past Grand Polemarchs, and immerse them in the caliber of leadership usually reserved for Fortune 500 C-suite retreats.
“We understand that normally, unless you work in a corporate space that typically sends their people to stuff like this, most people never have the opportunity to experience this level of training,” Grand Polemarch McMikle told a packed room of more than 400 attendees, including 200 undergraduates—the living future of the Bond. “If you’re going to lead, be
36 THE JOURNAL ♦ WINTER 2025-2026
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