An Exclusive Invitation To Become A Founding Sponsor Of The Alpha Rho Collection At The Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library
- 6 hours ago
- 4 min read
APCAA Staff
In a fraternal landscape defined by milestones, the Alpha Rho Chapter Alumni Association (APCAA) has charted a course no other chapter alumni organization in the 636-chapter history of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. has ever attempted. Over the past two and a half years, APCAA has transformed vision into legacy — and now, we are inviting the brotherhood to stand with us in completing it.
In April 2023, APCAA made history by becoming the first and only college-specific alumni association in the entire fraternity to catalog, archive, and establish a verified artifact collection for research and preservation purposes. The result: The Alpha Rho Collection at the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library — a living testament to the century-long intellectual and fraternal tradition of Alpha Rho Chapter at Morehouse College.
In May 2025, APCAA will unveil exclusive artifact display cases and donor signage designed to provide the professional lighting, secure housing, and dignified placement that these irreplaceable prized possessions deserve. This moment will mark not only an institutional achievement — it will mark the permanent installation of a collection that belongs to every man who has ever worn the black and gold of Alpha Phi Alpha.
We are calling upon the brotherhood — brothers of Alpha Rho, the broader Alpha Phi Alpha family, and those who revere this legacy — to join the drive to assemble presenting sponsors for this perpetual exhibit. This is more than a donation. This is your once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to cement your own historical mark alongside some of the most legendary Alpha Men ever to grace this earth.
The Alpha Rho Collection honors artifacts from the personal possessions of giants: the Honorable Maynard H. Jackson, Atlanta's transformative first Black mayor; Dr. Hugh M. Gloster, pioneering president of Morehouse College; Alpha Rho Charter Member Brother Father Henry James Charles Bowden; Dr. Hamilton Earl Holmes, trailblazer and Georgia's first Black student at the University of Georgia; the Honorable Horace T. Ward, federal judge and civil rights warrior; Morehouse College Interim President Wiley A. Perdue; Alpha Phi Alpha Jewel Henry Arthur Callis; Morehouse College 5th President and Eta Lambda Chapter's Dr. John Hope; and the legendary Morehouse College Dean of Students Brailsford Reese Brazeal. To hold a place alongside these names is not a privilege offered twice.
SPONSORSHIP RECOGNITION
In recognition of your tax-deductible support, APCAA will provide display exclusive naming rights across four distinguished categories:
Founding Society ($1,000) — Your name enshrined as a founding pillar of the exhibit
Principal Society ($500) — Recognition as a principal supporter of the collection
Supporting Society ($200) — Your contribution recognized in the permanent display
In Memoriam Society (+$500) — Available exclusively to Founding Society donors who wish to honor an Omega Chamber Brother by name, as tribute
Similar to the engravings on the black granite 90th Anniversary Memorial Obelisk standing on the campus of Morehouse College, the AUCRWW Library donor marker will feature the same signature black granite with gold lettering. It will be permanently displayed inside the 2nd floor Archives Research Center, directly adjacent to The Alpha Rho Collection — where it will be seen by scholars, students, and visitors for generations to come.
ABOUT THE ARCHIVES RESEARCH CENTER
The Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library's Archives Research Center is one of the most distinguished repositories of African American history in the nation. Its collections document the African American experience through civil rights, race relations, education, literature, visual and performing arts, religion, politics, and social work. Holdings include rare books, manuscript collections, digital archives, and materials chronicling the institutions of the Atlanta University Center and the broader African American and African Diasporic experience.
In July 2025, the archives acquired what may be the collection's most treasured artifact: APCAA proudly announced the extraordinary rediscovery and return of the original charter document establishing the Alpha Rho Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. at Morehouse College. Originally signed by all 13 charter members and issued on January 5, 1924, this founding document designates Alpha Rho as the 38th chapter of the nation's first intercollegiate fraternity founded by African American men.
Additionally, the Alpha Rho Chapter Collection is recognized as the most proficient holding organization of Morehouse College Torch Yearbooks, boasting some 75 original editions — including two rare 1923 editions believed to be from the first year the college produced this historic imprint.
Under the leadership of Public Affairs Executive Bro. BMaynard Scarborough — who accepted an invitation to join the Morehouse College Archives Board of Directors at the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library — APCAA has grown into both a scholarship support system for undergraduate students and a premier steward of Alpha Phi Alpha's century-long legacy at Morehouse College. The work done here belongs to every Alpha Man. Now, through your sponsorship, your name can belong to this work — permanently, powerfully, and in perpetuity.
NOTE: All donations are 100% tax-deductible. Funds raised in support of the exhibition build-out WILL NOT be co-mingled with the association's existing 2nd Century Scholarship Fund.
Comments