100 YEARS
THE MU CHAPTER CENTENNIAL
The Kansas Uni ver s i ty Chapter, the Mu of Kappa Alpha Ps i , Ce l ebrates i t s Centenni a l
By Clifford D. Franklin
(MO) Alumni Chapter. During this time, Ernest Gayden (Mu 1923) was the only African American student in the School of Engineering following in the footsteps of Charter initiates John Hunter and Leonard Mims . At the time, the University of Kansas was one of the few midwestern universities that allowed African Americans to enroll in its School of Engineering. The chapter continued to initiate members that dedicate their lives to the Fraternity. The 48 th Laurel Wreath Laureate and Mu charter initiate Oba B. White relocated to Arkansas where he joined the Little Rock (AR) Alumni Chapter. Over his years in Arkansas, White would help charter numerous chapters in the Southwestern Province. White is one of only eight fraternity members awarded both the Laurel Wreath and the Elder Watson Diggs awards; the latter bestowed to White in 1973. In 1953, the 15 th Grand Polemarch W. Henry “Stud” Greene ap- pointed White as the 11 th Southwestern Province Polemarch [1953-1956]. An educator, N. Webster Moore (Mu 1934) , served as the Fraternity’s eighth Grand Historian [1945-1947]. As Grand Histo-
A s we reflect on the brave, am- bitious young African Ameri- can men who traveled from Texas, Tennessee, Mississippi, and throughout Kansas to attend the University of Kansas in Lawrence, KS, we must also reflect on what America looked like at that time. World War I ended in 1918. East St. Louis, IL had just experienced one of the worst race riots in American history in 1917, with upwards of 250 African Americans mur- dered and another 6,000 left homeless. In 1919, more than 20 riotous and vio- lent Black-White race-related incidents occurred in more than three dozen cities in the United States including Chicago, IL, Omaha, NE, and Elaine, AR. In 1920, the U.S. Congress ended the 18 th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibited the manufacturing and sale of alcohol. Women were finally able to vote in the Presidential election of 1920 after years of agitation. And a year later in 1921, the infamous Tulsa mas- sacre destroyed Black Wall Street. Through all of this turmoil and uncertainty, 15 University of Kansas (KU) students petitioned the Fraternity to become members of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. The Grand Board of the Fraternity, led by 2 nd Grand Polemarch Irven Armstrong, accepted the petition. Thus, the Fraternity chartered the Mu of Kappa Alpha Psi on March 27, 1920. The charter initiates were: Turner P. Ransom, Leonard H. Mims, Benjamin J. Moore Jr., Willard Johnson, Emmett Lionel Hughes, Oba B. White, John M. Hunter, Alfred W. Banks, Harry J. Harwell, Harrison W. Hollie, John H. Williams, Aubrey J. Baker, Wilbur Pinkard, Percy Young , and Emil Black .
the fraternal activities throughout the 1920s, including hosting regional meet- ings in 1924 and 1930. An article in the June 1921 issue of The Kappa Alpha Psi Journal featured two accounts of Mu Chapter charter initiate’s achievements: • Percy Young served overseas with the 805 th Pioneer Infantry during World War I. Following the war, Young graduated from KU in 1921 and entered the University of Chicago to study medicine; • John H. Williams served in the Student Army Training Corps and graduated from KU’s School of Pharmacy in 1921. The April/May 1923 issue of The Kappa Alpha Psi Journal article cites that the Mu Chapter hosted its first Founders’ Day with 22 brothers in attendance led by the 4 th Grand Polemarch, W. Ellis Stewart. Charter initiate Harrison W. Hollie was now serving as Grand Strategus for the Fraternity and was a law school senior. In 1924, Hollie led the Fraternity’s District 7 and helped charter the Kansas City
rian, Moore authored an unpublished history of Kappa Alpha Psi [1911– 1947]. He later assisted
in writing the 1952 Handbook of Kappa Alpha Psi
and assisted Founder Guy
Mu Chapter began to participate in
12 | FALL-WINTER 2020 ♦ THE JOURNAL
Publishing achievement for more than 105 years
Made with FlippingBook Publishing Software