BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc., one of the oldest historically Black fraternities in the country, has partnered with the Indiana University Kelley School of Business with the goal of increasing diversity in corporate leadership.
Through the partnership, college graduates from around the world who are Kappa Alpha Psi members are invited to apply for a fellowship program to attend the Kelley School’s nationally ranked in-residence Full-Time MBA Program. Successful candidates will be known as Kappa Alpha Psi Fellows.
The fraternity, open to all men regardless of color, religion, or national origin, has 642 active chapters with more than 250,000 initiated members worldwide.
Kappa Alpha Psi was founded 113 years ago by Black students at IU seeking camaraderie and support.
“This partnership creates an exciting opportunity for Kappa men to share in the MBA experience at our birthplace and deepen the special bond that Kappa Alpha Psi and Indiana University share,” said its international president, Jimmy McMikle, the 35th grand polemarch of Kappa Alpha Psi, a 1991 initiate of the Alpha Chapter, and a 1992 IU graduate.
Ash Soni, dean of the Kelley School and The Sungkyunkwan Professor, said the new partnership continues Kelley’s history of leading the way toward a more diverse classroom and workplace experience.
“Six decades ago, Kelley was one of three founders of the Consortium for Graduate Study in Management, which has helped more than 100,000 people of color earn a graduate business degree,” Soni said. “Today, we celebrate this partnership with another impactful organization to offer even more leadership opportunities and promote greater diversity, equity, and inclusion in corporate America.”
The Kelley School was also one of the first participants of the Forté Foundation, which supports the advancement of women in business.
In addition to student and alumni chapters in nearly every state across the country, Kappa Alpha Psi has chapters in the Bahamas, United Kingdom, Germany, Korea, Japan, Saint Thomas, Saint Croix, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Nigeria, Bermuda, Canada, Dubai, Dominican Republic and South Africa.
Other noted alumni initiated through the Alpha Chapter at IU include Elbert Frank Cox, the first Black person to receive a PhD in mathematics; Booker T. Jones, a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and record producer; the late George Taliaferro, a leader of desegregation at IU and the first African American to be drafted by an NFL team; and Jeremy A. Morris, an IU Trustee and three-time graduate.
“The Kelley School of Business stands as a global leader in business education, and I am immensely proud of our collaboration. Together, Kappa Alpha Psi and the Kelley School of Business are committed to elevating the business landscape and fostering diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging throughout the professional journey,” said Morris, also an Indianapolis-based trial attorney who was a 2002 initiate through the Alpha Chapter.
Kappa Alpha Psi and the Kelley School will work together to support members who want to develop as leaders through an MBA. In addition to receiving financial support, Kappa Alpha Psi Fellows will benefit from the school’s one-of-a-kind professional development workshop, Me, Inc., and become part of a global alumni network of more than 130,000.
“As a proud student at the Kelley School of Business, I am extremely honored to be a part of this extraordinary partnership,” said Jordan Q. Smith, an operations management major at Kelley and a junior grand vice polemarch for the fraternity’s national Grand Chapter. “Kelley School of Business and Kappa Alpha Psi are paving the way for the next generation of business leaders, including myself.”
At least three full-tuition fellowships will be provided annually to successful applicants meeting the program’s admissions requirements. This will include applicants referred by the international headquarters of Kappa Alpha Psi or one of its regional chapters.
The school also may support fellowship recipients to attend Kappa Alpha Psi conferences and provide applicants with application fee waivers. Kelley also will develop webinars and other opportunities for Kappa Alpha Psi undergraduates to learn more about careers in business.
Kelley will continue to pursue similar opportunities with other “Divine 9” historically Black fraternities and sororities through outreach via the National Pan Hellenic Council.