O M E G A : Chapter of Sweet Rest
Emmett Bashful was One of the “Giants” of Alpha By Rick Blalock
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to establish a campus of hen the word spread Southern University in New that Emmett Bashful Orleans. had passed, it was another As chancellor Bashful one of those moments when fostered SUNO’s growth from Alpha members everywhere one partially constructed pause. Even though a short building, 15 faculty and man in height, Bashful was 158 freshmen to a campus a towering figure in the offering 1,000 courses and fraternity and in professional servicing over 3,000 students and educational arenas. per semester. He stayed on Brother Bashful, the as chancellor until retiring in first and longtime chancellor 1987. He then held emeritus of Southern University New status until his death. Orleans (SUNO) was born of In Alpha he was always humble beginnings in 1917. He Brother Emmett Bashful then and now (circa 1964 and in later years). that special brother who spent a lifetime advancing the provided mentoring and cause of freedom, justice and leadership to the thousands of Alphas who have been fortunate to education—especially for African-American students during the days cross his path during their life’s journey. Made an Alpha at Beta Sigma of the Civil Rights Movement and beyond. Chapter at SU in 1939, he maintained his activity with Alpha for the Bashful was one of the first African Americans with a Doctor of next 71 years. In 1999, he earned the fraternity’s highest individual Philosophy Degree in constitutional law, and long before President honor, the Alpha Phi Alpha Award of Merit. He also was awarded and Barack Obama, was one of the first black college professors in that honorary Doctor of Laws Degree from his alma mater, SU. field. After earning his bachelor’s degree at Southern University (SU) Bashful entered Omega Chapter February 26, in Baton Rouge. in Baton Rouge, La., he would become the first black student at the He was 93. H University of Illinois to earn a graduate degree in political science. He then earned his doctorate there before returning to Louisiana Searcy James Ewell Sr., 82, of Little Rock, Ark., was a member of Pi Lambda Chapter in Little Rock, Ark. He was initiated at Nu Chapter at Lincoln University in Lincoln University, Pa., in 1949, and later graduated magna cum laude in 1953, with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. Brother Ewell earned a master’s degree in elementary education from Saint Louis University in St. Louis, Mo. He was also valedictorian of his graduating class at the Missouri School for the Blind (MSB) in St. Louis. As a student at MSB, he had worked part time, teaching boxing and swimming courses. Early in his career, Ewell was principal of the racially segregated Arkansas School for the Deaf and Blind in Little Rock. Ewell, who retired as a school teacher and band director, was also a professional musician and well known
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in local entertainment circles. Though challenged with blindness at a very early age, he did not allow his disability to prevent him from becoming a successful and valuecreating member of society. In addition to his more than 50 years of membership in Alpha Phi Alpha, Ewell’s activities and accomplishments included service on several boards of organizations that aided people with disabilities, including being president of the Arkansas chapter of the National Federation for the Blind. He also held memberships in the alumni associations of Lincoln University, Missouri School for the Blind and Arkansas School for the Blind. A member of Mount Pleasant Baptist Church in Little Rock, Ewell was a deacon there for many years. President Bill Clinton, when he was governor of Arkansas, appointed Ewell to the Silver Hair Legislature. Ewell entered Omega Chapter on Oct. 22, 2010.
George Exum Sr., (aka “Bossman”) of Raleigh, NC.., was a member of Phi Lambda Chapter in Raleigh, N.C. He was initiated on Dec. 17, 1945, at Beta Nu Chapter of Florida Agricultural and Mechanical College (now Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University [FAMU] in Tallahassee, Fla. Born in 1922, he was a graduate of F (FAMU) in Tallahassee, Fla. After college, he began a life of enterprise, mentoring, community service and leadership in the Wake County, N.C., community, which spanned over six decades. Brother Exum was the first licensed African-American general contractor in North Carolina; an entrepreneur, a building developer and a community leader. In Raleigh, Exum’s business ventures through the 1950s and 1960s