Black Arkansas State University alumni returned to campus as a part of Black Alumni Weekend, a series of events hosted over April 8-11 to reunite Black alumni from multiple generations. 

“We just wanted to bring (alumni) back to campus to fellowship as a big reunion,” said Adrian Everett, director of direct transfer student services. 

Alumni from all over the country were in attendance, hailing from Atlanta, Houston, Dallas and even Washington D.C. 

The weekend was kicked off with a meet-and-greet at the Social on April 8. On April 9, there was a block party, followed by a crossing over for new members of the Theta Upsilon chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha. 

After the crossing over, those in attendance moved to Centennial Hall for the late night All Black Affair. They concluded the weekend with a brunch at Embassy Suites on April 10. 

The idea for the reunion came following the death of one of A-State’s Black alumni. 

“I missed the camaraderie of us being together,” said Lachandra Turner, the creator of the event. “I’m glad that we now have the time to see each other, so we won’t be coming again on such a sad occasion.”

Planning for the event began around homecoming, when the Black Alumni Association saw many A-State alumni returning to campus. They wanted to evoke feelings of nostalgia and host their “own kind of homecoming,” Turner said. 

The block party had local Black vendors, including West BBQ, Greek merchandise store the Greek Vine and even an on-site barber, all of whom were A-State alumni.

“It’s exciting to be back on campus and to see everybody. It feels good being able to come out here and support my business and have people support it,” said Laquita Lewis, owner of the Greek Vine. 

Crossing over for Alpha Phi Alpha began at 6:36 p.m. The organization sets their start times on a six to commemorate the year of the organization’s founding, 1906. 

The new members arrived at the event surrounded by torches and wearing hard gray masks. As the night went on, each inductee’s mask was removed and they were welcomed as full members of Alpha Phi Alpha. 

“The fact that (the alumni) came back and got to see the new members is really special for them,” Everett said. 

The new members were Jamal Romes, Alexander Veasey, Jamal Harper and Jaden Flanigan. They performed a probate show, presenting their lifetime commitment to the fraternity.

The inductees remained masked to show they stayed private about their interest with Alpha Phi Alpha. They performed strolls, where they presented various songs and dances to show their knowledge of the organization. 

After the completion of the probate, the members’ big brother removed their masks. They then presented their new names.  

“It feels wonderful to be a part of this great fraternity and this legendary chapter,” Flanigan said. “This is one of the greatest decisions I’ve ever made and I’ll forever hold the name ‘Alpha Phi Alpha’ high.”

Romes became “Ph1rst Blood”, Veasey “Phro2en Chaos”, Harper “Phroz3n Mentality” and Flanigan “Golden Glacier Da Don”. 

The usage of terms such as “frozen”, “ice cold” and more are traditionally tied to the fraternity. They represent a variety of things, such as the fraternity’s founding on an “ice cold” day of Dec. 4, 1906 or being “cold-blooded” in the face of adversity. 

“I can’t wait to get to work with my brothers and make a great impact on our campus and in our community,” Harper said.

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