Tau Phi

History of the Tau Phi Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.

The Tau Phi chapter was chartered on Tuesday, March 15, 1927 in Little Rock, AR, by a group of eligible men employed by the Century Life Insurance Company.  Members during this time included J. R. Fouchee, D. D. Shekelford, and James H. Bailey.  The chapter flourished and became a very strong chapter for a few years.  When the Century Life headquarters moved to Hot Springs in the early 1930s, the Tau Phi moved as well.  Due to the small number of members, the chapter disbanded.

Bro. Elza H. Hunter reorganized Tau Phi on February 15, 1937, and was selected Basileus.  Under his leadership, the chapter relocated to Little Rock, grew, and became stronger.

Many of the Tau Phi brothers were educators and professionals in the Little Rock and Pine Bluff communities; thus, meetings rotated between the two cities.  Due to the sheer number of brothers working on and around the Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical & Normal College (AM&N; now the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff—UAPB) campus, the chapter was transferred in 1946 to Pine Bluff.

Realizing the need for an Omega chapter on the AM&N campus, brothers in Tau Phi concentrated their efforts in 1944 to make this need a reality.  Tau Phi brothers, led by Bro. Dr. Lawrence A. Davis, Sr., received permission from the floor at the 30^th Grand Conclave to establish an undergraduate chapter.  Thus, the Tau Sigma chapter was established on March 11, 1945, on the AM&N campus.  Bro. Butler T. Henderson, who was instrumental in the founding of Tau Sigma, served as the faculty advisor.

Before the Fraternity was re-districted for 11 districts following the post-war years, Omega chapters in the state of Arkansas were part of the Eighth District—then Arkansas, Kansas, and Missouri.  During this time, Tau Phi and Tau Sigma jointly hosted the annual Omega Psi Phi Eighth District meeting on the AM&N campus in May 1950.  The theme of the district meeting was “Educating for World Peace.”

Many prominent African Americans from the Little Rock and Pine Bluff communities were either initiated through Tau Phi or members of the chapter.  Among these brothers were:

1. Elza H. Hunter, former Eighth District Representative (1947-1951); Grand Marshal of the 30^th Grand Conclave; and longtime educator in the North Little Rock school system.
2. Walter L. Littlejohn, former Ninth District Representative (1978-1981) and educator at UAPB.
3. Wiley A. Branton, Sr., attorney for the Little Rock Nine and former dean of the Howard University Law School.
4. W. Harold Flowers, educator and minister; first African-American special circuit judge in Jefferson County, AR; and instrumental in the desegregation of the University of Arkansas Law School.
5. Lawrence A. Davis, Sr., at the time, the youngest college president in the United States; served as president of AM&N College for over 30 years.
6. Butler T. Henderson, AM&N educator and organizer of Tau Sigma chapter of Omega Psi Phi; director of the Earl Warren Legal Training Program with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund.