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This article is a part of a series on
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity
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The list of Alpha Phi Alpha brothers (commonly referred to as Alphas[1]) includes initiated and honorary members of Alpha Phi Alpha (ΆΦΆ), the first inter-collegiate Greek-letter organization established for Black college students.[2] Founded on December 4, 1906 at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, Alpha Phi Alpha opened chapters at other colleges, universities, and cities, and named them with Greek-letters. Members traditionally pledge into a chapter, although some members were granted honorary status prior to the fraternity's discontinuation of the practice of granting honorary membership. A chapter name ending in “Lambda” denotes a graduate chapter. No chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha is designated Omega, the last letter of the Greek alphabet that traditionally signifies "the end". Deceased brothers are respectfully referred to as having joined Omega Chapter. Frederick Douglass is distinguished as the only member initiated posthumously when he became an exalted honorary member of Omega chapter in 1921.[2]

The fraternity through its college and alumni chapters serves the community through nearly a thousand chapters in the United States, Europe and the Caribbean."[3]

The Cornell University Sign at the West Campus Entrance. Cornell University was the site of the founding of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.

The fraternity has been led by 32 General Presidents and its membership includes at least two Heads of Government, three Governors, a Vice President, two Senators, a Supreme Court Justice, two Presidential candidates, Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, Lenin Peace Prize, Kluge Prize, and French Légion d'honneur and Croix de guerre laureates, and at least four Rhodes Scholars, seventeen Ambassadors, thirteen Presidential Medal of Freedom, three Congressional Gold Medal, and seventeen Spingarn Medal recipients, and fourteen Olympians. Buildings, monuments, and schools have been named after Alpha men such as the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, the Whitney Young Memorial Bridge, and the Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.

The honor of serving as General President is especially heartfelt when one recognizes that in
"The House of Alpha",
the President is
"One Among Equals."
James R. Williams[4]

The House of Alpha was written in 1946 by fraternity brother Sydney P. Brown as a dedicatory statement for the "Alpha House" (fraternity house) of Theta Chapter and Xi Lambda chapter who jointly shared the fraternity house. Loyalty to the Fraternity ideas was repeatedly urged by brothers on the part of those who were among the initiated, and for every chapter with the vision of a fraternity house. The statement has become a manifesto for the national fraternity and chapters, as each may symbolically be referred to as a "House of Alpha."[2][5]

Eugene K. Jones, sometimes referred to as "The Visionary Jewel" once said:

Alpha Phi Alpha, the oldest of Negro Fraternities, with all of its members presumably far above the average American and having a good and practical understanding of the salient factors involved in the Negro's problem...should be able to take into their hands the leadership in the Negro's struggle for status.[6]

Here follows a list of notable Alphas.

Charter for Alpha Phi Alpha's Alpha chapter with signatures of founders–Cornell University. circa. 1906
Name Original Chapter Notability Reference
Henry A. Callis Alpha Co-founder of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity; 6th General President of Alpha Phi Alpha [7][8]
Charles H. Chapman Alpha Co-founder of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity; Professor of Agriculture at FAMU [7]
Eugene K. Jones Alpha Co-founder of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity; First Executive Director of the National Urban League; Member of President Franklin D Roosevelt’s Black Cabinet [7][9]
George B. Kelley Alpha Co-founder of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity [7]
Nathaniel A. Murray Alpha Co-founder of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity [7]
Robert H. Ogle Alpha Co-founder of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity; professional staff member to the Committee on Appropriations. [7]
Vertner W. Tandy Alpha Co-founder of Alpha Phi Alpha; Architect, whose most famous commission was probably the mansion of Harlem millionairess Madam C.J. Walker [7][10]


Educators

Ninety-five percent of all Black Colleges have been headed by an Alpha.[5]

Floyd Flake
Norman Francis
John Hope
Charles S. Johnson
Frederick Patterson
Name Original Chapter Notability Reference
Herman Branson Beta Gamma President of Central State University and Lincoln University; Co-discoverer of the Alpha helix; Sickle cell physicist [11][12]
James P. Brawley Alpha Phi President of Clark College [13]
Calvin Burnett Delta Lambda President of Coppin State University [14]
Julius Chambers Gamma Beta Attorney who argued in the Supreme Court case styled Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education; 3rd Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund; President of North Carolina Central University [14][15]
James Cheek Beta Rho President of Howard University [16]
Thomas W. Cole, Jr. Alpha Sigma First President of Clark Atlanta University, President of West Virginia State University, Interim Chancellor of University of Massachusetts Amherst [17]
Thomas W. Cole, Sr. Alpha Sigma President of Wiley College; 21st General President of Alpha Phi Alpha [8][14]
Matthew Davage Alpha Phi President of Clark College, now Clark Atlanta University [13]
William B. Delauder Beta Alpha President of Delaware State University [16]
James Douglas Delta Theta First President of Texas Southern University [14]
Floyd H. Flake Zeta Gamma Lambda Former US Congressman from New York; President of Wilberforce University; Pastor Greater Allen Cathedral of New York [18][19]
Ernest A. Finney, Jr. Delta Alpha Chief Justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court; South Carolina House of Representatives; Interim President of South Carolina State University [16][20]
Luther H. Foster, Jr. Beta Gamma Fourth President of Tuskegee University [2]
Luther H. Foster, Sr. “unknown” President of Virginia State University [21]
Norman Francis Sigma Lambda President of Xavier University; President of Louisiana Recovery Authority; 2006 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient [22][23]
James Gavin Gamma Mu President of Morehouse School of Medicine [13]
Hugh Gloster Alpha Rho President of Morehouse College [13]
George Gore, Jr. “unknown” First President of Florida A&M University; Interim President of Fisk University; Founder of Alpha Kappa Mu Honor Society [24]
Cornelius Henderson Alpha Phi President of Gammon Theological Seminary [14][25]
Charles Hines Beta President of Prairie View A&M University; Major General [26]
Ernest Holloway Beta Kappa 14th President of Langston University [14]
John Hope Eta Lambda First Black President of Morehouse College; President of Atlanta University; Co-founder of the Niagara Movement and NAACP; 4th President of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH); 1936 Spingarn Medal recipient [13][27][28][29]
Freeman A. Hrabowski III Gamma Iota President of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County; social activist [30][31]
Frederick Humphries Beta Nu First President of Florida A&M University [16]
Charles S. Johnson Theta Editor of the National Urban League’s Opportunity magazine; First Black President of Fisk University [9]
Walter M. Kimbrough Zeta Pi President of Philander Smith College [16][32]
Raphael Lanier Mu Lambda United States Ambassador to Liberia; First President of Texas Southern University [11]
Thomas F. Law Delta Rho First President of St. Paul's College [14]
John H. Lewis “unknown” President of Morris Brown College [13]
John Middleton Nu Eta Lambda President of Morris Brown College [13]
Luna Mishoe Alpha Psi Lambda President of Delaware State University [33]
Joseph T. McMillan, Jr. Beta First President of Huston-Tillotson College [14]
Frederick D. Patterson “unknown” Third President Tuskegee University; Co-founder of the United Negro College Fund (UNCF); 1987 Presidential Medal of Freedom and 1988 Spingarn Medal recipient [22][27][34]
Benjamin Payton Beta Delta Fifth President of Tuskegee University [14]
Henry Ponder Beta Kappa President of Talladega College, Fisk University and Benedict College; 28th General President of Alpha Phi Alpha; vice-chairman World Policy Council [8][11][35]
Earl Richardson Delta Nu President of Morgan State University [14]
John Slaughter Kappa Tau President of University of Maryland and Occidental College; First African American Director of the National Science Foundation [36]
Louis Wade Sullivan Alpha Rho Secretary of Health and Human Services; Co-founder and first President of Morehouse School of Medicine [16]
Ronald Temple Delta Gamma Lambda President of City Colleges of Chicago [16]
Walter Washington Gamma Upsilon President of Alcorn State University; 24th General President of Alpha Phi Alpha [8][14]
Charles H. Wesley Zeta President of Central State University; President of Wilberforce University; Executive Director and President of the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASALH); 14th General President and Historian of Alpha Phi Alpha [8][16][29]


Professors and researchers

John Franklin
Name Original Chapter Notability Reference
John Hope Franklin Alpha Chi President of American Historical Association; 1995 Spingarn Medal, Presidential Medal of Freedom, and 2006 Kluge Prize recipient [27][14][37][38]
Hobart Jarrett Alpha Sigma Member of the Wiley College Debate Team that in 1935 defeated the University of Southern California national champions; author of the second volume of The History of Sigma Pi Phi [39][40]
Elgy Johnson Alpha Omicron Mathematician [11]


Kelly Miller Beta
(Honorary)		 Mathematician; First Black admitted to Johns Hopkins University; Author of Out of the House of Bondage [41][16][42]


James A. Porter Beta First scholar whose book Modern Negro Art became a standard reference work on Black Art in America [2][43]
Cornel West Zeta Beta Lambda Professor of religion at Harvard and Princeton [16]


Rhodes scholars

The Rhodes Scholarship is the world's oldest and arguably most prestigious international fellowship. The scholarships have been awarded to applicants annually since 1902 by the Rhodes Trust in Oxford on the basis of academic qualities, as well as those of character.

Name Original Chapter Notability Reference
Norman Washington Manley Beta Beta Lambda Prime Minister of Jamaica, Founder of Jamaica's People's National Party, 1914 Rhodes Scholar [44][45]
Westley Moore Sigma Sigma 2001 Rhodes Scholar [46]
Randal Pinkett Kappa Phi Lambda 4th Winner of NBC's reality show, The Apprentice; Rhodes Scholar [47][48]


Andrew Zawacki Kappa Pi 1994 Rhodes Scholar [22]


Name Original Chapter Notability Reference
Jesse Binga Honorary Founder of Binga State Bank in Chicago [41]
Henry Brown “unknown” Vice President for Marketing Affairs and Development with Anheuser-Busch [49]
W. Melvin Brown Beta Delta CEO of American Development Corporation [16]
Allen Counts Beta Chairman, Doley Securities, Inc.; former President, Mcclendon, Pryor, Counts (once the largest black-owned investment bank in the USA) [26]
Thomas J. Burrell Theta CEO of Burrell Advertising [16]
Nathaniel Goldston “unknown” CEO and founder of Gourmet Services [49]
Alonzo F. Herndon Eta Lambda
(Honorary)		 Founder and President of Atlanta Life Insurance; namesake of the Alonzo Herndon Stadium at Morris Brown College [13][50]
Norris Herndon Sigma President of Atlanta Life Insurance [51]
Eugene Jackson Epsilon Psi CEO of World African Network [33]
Charles James III “unknown” CEO of James Produce [49]
Clifton Jeter Beta CEO, Agricultural Federal Credit Union; CFO of Kennedy Center [26]
John H. Johnson Theta Founder of Johnson Publishing Company, which publishes Ebony and Jet magazines; First Black to appear on the Forbes 400 Rich List, namesake of Howard University’s School of Communications, Presidential Medal of Freedom and 1966 Spingarn Medal recipient; a portion of Chicago’s famed Michigan Avenue was renamed John H. Johnson Avenue [22][27][52]
L.D. Milton “unknown” President of Citizens Bank [33]
Henry Parks Kappa Founder of Parks Sausage [16]
Samuel Pierce Alpha Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; Argued before the United States Supreme Court on behalf of Martin Luther King Jr. and the New York Times in the important First Amendment case styled New York Times v. Sullivan; first African-American to serve on the Board of Directors of a Fortune 500 company [53][54][55]
Jonathan Rodgers Alpha Epsilon CEO of TV One; president of CBS Television Stations, and executive producer for the CBS Morning News and Weekend Evening Newscasts [56]
Joshua Smith Delta Xi CEO of Maxima Corporation [16]


Music

Duke Ellington
Lionel Hampton
Lionel Richie
Noble Sissle
Name Original Chapter Notability Reference
Cannonball Adderley Beta Nu Jazz Saxophonist [57]
Gerald Albright Iota Chi American Jazz Saxophonist [16]
Jerry Butler Xi Lambda Songwriter, composer, former lead singer of The Impressions [16]
Duke Ellington Alpha Zeta Lambda Composer, bandleader, actor; Grammy Award winner; 1959 Spingarn Medal and 1969 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient; Pulitzer Prize in recognition of his musical genius [16][27][58]
Marc Gay Beta Singer in the R&B group Shai [16]
Lionel Hampton Phi Jazz percussionist and bandleader; National Medal of Arts recipient; Goodwill Ambassador for the United States [57][59]
Antonio Hart Sigma Jazz Saxophonist [16]
Donny Hathaway Beta Songwriter and arranger for The Staple Singers, Jerry Butler, and Aretha Franklin; singer who recorded duets with Roberta Flack, recorded the theme song to the TV series Maude [16][60]
Fletcher Henderson Alpha Phi Pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer, important in the development of big band jazz and Swing music [61]
Carl Martin Beta Singer in the R&B group Shai [57]
Lionel Richie Alpha Nu Lambda
 Singer and member of the Commodores, Grammy Award and Academy Award winner; 2003 Hollywood Walk of Fame honoree [57][62]
Noble Sissle “unknown” Jazz composer, lyricist, bandleader, and singer of the Harlem Renaissance; lyricist of Shuffle Along which became the first hit musical on Broadway written by and about African-Americans [63][64]
Darnell Van Rensalier Beta Singer in the R&B group Shai [57]


Film, television and theatre

Tim Reid
Paul Robeson
Name Original Chapter Notability Reference
Darryl M. Bell Delta Zeta Actor, best known for A Different World [16]
Benny Boom Pi Rho Director of music videos [16]
Rusty Cundieff Alpha Delta Actor, writer; director of Tales from the Hood, and the Chappelle's Show; correspondent on TV Nation [16]
Todd Duncan “unknown” First Black to sing with a major opera company and also the original Porgy in George Gershwin's Porgy and Bess; 1984 George Peabody Medal of Music recipient [16][65]
Derek Fordjour Delta Chi Producer of "The Black Sorority Project: The Exodus", the story of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority [66]
Sydney Hall Beta Actor in The Deal, Lord of War, and Generation Kill [67][68]
Gary Hardwick Epsilon Producer, writer, director of The Brothers, Deliver Us from Eva, "Radio", and Bring It On [16]
Rob Hardy Beta Nu Producer, writer, director and actor of films such as The Gospel, Pandora's Box, Stomp the Yard, and Trois [69]
Kefla Hare Xi Beta Cast Member, Road Rules: Down Under [16]
Gabriel Langley Beta Sigma Cast Member, best known for College Hill, the first African American reality television show [16]
Vaughn Lowery Alpha Spokesmodel for Joe Boxer [70][71]
William Packer Beta Nu Producer, writer, director and actor of films such as The Gospel, Pandora's Box, Stomp the Yard, and Trois [71]
Joseph C. Phillips Iota Zeta Lambda Actor in The Cosby Show, General Hospital, and Strictly Business, political commentator on NPR’s "News and Notes with Ed Gordon" [16]
Randal Pinkett Kappa Phi Lambda 4th Winner of NBC's reality show, The Apprentice; Rhodes Scholar [47][48]
Paul Robeson Nu NFL player, Actor and singer; social activist, 1945 Spingarn Medal recipient; Stalin Peace Prize laureate [27][72]
Keenen Ivory Wayans Gamma Phi Creator of comedy series In Living Color; Actor, comedian, writer, director; Emmy Award winner [16]
Jamar White Delta Chi Producer of "The Black Sorority Project: The Exodus", the story of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority [66]
Drew Watkins Beta Producer, Inside the NBA; 2-time Emmy Award winner [26]


Note: individuals who belong in multiple sections appear in the first relevant section.


Vice Presidents and Supreme Court

Hubert Humphrey
Thurgood Marshall
Name Original Chapter Notability Reference
Hubert Humphrey Honorary 38th Vice President of the United States; 1968 Presidential candidate; Senator from Minnesota; Mayor of Minneapolis; 1979 Congressional Gold Medal and 1980 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient [22][73]
Thurgood Marshall Nu First Black Justice of U.S. Supreme Court; Attorney in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka; First Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund; 1946 Spingarn Medal and 1993 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient [53][74]


Cabinet and Cabinet-level Ranks

Lee Brown
Samuel Pierce
Name Original Chapter Notability Reference
Lee P. Brown Epsilon Beta Director of National Drug Control Policy; First African-American Mayor of Houston, Texas [33][75]
Robert J. Brown “unknown” Special Assistant for Minority Affairs [2][76]
William Thaddeus Coleman, Jr. Psi Secretary of Transportation; First Black Supreme Court law clerk; co-author of the brief in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka; co-counsel on the landmark case, McLaughlin v. Florida, which established the constitutionality of interracial marriages; Editor of the Harvard Law Review; 1995 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient; [53][77]
Rayford Logan Omicron First Executive Director of the National Urban League; Member of President Franklin D Roosevelt’s Black Cabinet; 2nd Executive Director of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH); 1980 Spingarn Medal recipient; 15th General President of Alpha Phi Alpha [8][78]
Samuel Pierce Alpha Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; Argued before the United States Supreme Court on behalf of Martin Luther King Jr. and the New York Times in the important First Amendment case styled New York Times v. Sullivan; first African-American to serve on the Board of Directors of a Fortune 500 company [53][54]
Emmett Scott Honorary Special Assistant to the Secretary of War [41]
Louis Wade Sullivan Alpha Rho Secretary of Health and Human Services; Co-founder and first President of Morehouse School of Medicine [16]


Members of the United States Congress

Further information: United States Congress
Edward Brooke
Danny Davis
Ron Dellums
Chaka Fattah
Al Green