THE DALLAS (TX) ALUMNI CHAPTER CELEBRATES 85 YEARS
[1945-48]. DAC credits Williams with establishing DAC's presence and priori- tizing community and social engagement during this critical time.
African American elected as a Board of Trustee member of the Dallas Indepen- dent School District in 1967 and served in this role for 10 years. Dr. Conrad was elected to the Texas State Board of Education in 1984 and was serving his third term when he entered the Chapter Invisible in 1993. A true Kappa legend and community leader, an annual college scholarship was named in his honor in 1980 and, in 2004, the Dallas School District named a new high school in his honor. The 51 st Elder Watson Diggs Awardee, Brother Donald E. Grace's (DAC 1960) dedication and attention to detail enabled him to move up through the fraternal ranks. He served as DAC Polemarch [1973-1976] before relocat- ing to Austin, TX and eventually elected as Polemarch of Austin (TX) Alumni. Grace also served on the Grand Board of Directors and was the long-standing national chairman of the C. Rodger Wilson Leadership Conference. He also was one of the chief organizers and long-time Chairman of the Texas-New Mexico Kappa Caucus, which began in 1983 to create more significant equity among the states and chapters within the Southwestern Province. After laying the groundwork for this change in the
provincial landscape, the DAC experi- enced a tremendous period of promi- nence and influence. The 85 th Elder Watson Digg Awardee James C. Mitchell (Dallas (TX) AL 1978) served the Fraternity as Senior Grand Vice Polemarch [1991-1993] and as the 18 th Southwestern Province Polemarch [1986-1990]. He led DAC as its Polemarch from 1981 to 1983. A former Texas Instruments executive, Mitchell served on numerous boards, in- cluding Texas Instruments Foundation, NAACP, OIC, Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce, YMCA, PBS, NSBE, and Dallas Urban League. After retiring from Texas Instruments, Mitchell would later own and operate a mansion turned upscale reception hall located on Martin Luther King Blvd known as St. Martin's Place. The 81 st Elder Watson Diggs Award- ee, Emerson A. Lattimore (Delta Sigma 1960) served as the DAC Polemarch [1983-1985] before serving in various Southwestern Province officer roles. In 1991, the 27 th Grand Polemarch Robert Harris appointed Lattimore as the 20 th Southwestern Province Polemarch. Lattimore was one of six new Province Polemarchs that would be a close-knit group of fraternity leaders would come to be known far and wide as "The Six."
Notable DAC Members
Samuel L. Lassiter, a charter initiate of the Xi Chapter (Howard University) served as the second DAC Polemarch [1938-40]. In 1939, the 10 th Grand Polemarch James E. Scott appointed Lassiter as the 5 th Southwestern Prov- ince Polemarch. Bert V. Wadkins, the 15 th Elder Wat- son Diggs Awardee, was an exception- ally vital leader in developing National Guide Right programs. Dr. Emmett J. Conrad (Alpha Sigma 1941), a native of Baton Rouge, LA, Conrad was a Southern University and Meharry Medical College graduate and a World War II veteran. Conrad had a long and distinguished career and made history when he became the first African American Chief of Staff at Dallas's St. Paul Hospital in 1960. Conrad served the DAC's 10 th Polemarch [1958-1961]. The 19 th Grand Polemarch Ernest H. Davenport appointed him as the 14 th Southwestern Province Polemarch [1968-1971]. He was also the first
81 st Elder Watson Diggs Awardee,
85 th Elder Watson Digg Awardee James C. Mitchell (Dallas (TX) 1978).
Emerson A. Lattimore (Delta Sigma 1960).
Left: Dallas (TX) Alumni Chapter circa 1960s.
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