SLU hosts National Kappa League Leadership Conference

ST. LOUIS — The National Guide Right Centennial Celebration was held in St. Louis, Missouri, where the first conference occurred 100 years ago. 

During this Centennial Celebration, 600 young Black men in grades eight through 12 from across the U.S. participated in leadership development, community service, enrichment workshops, STEM, and recreational activities on Saint Louis University’s campus during the National Kappa League Leadership Conference. 

“We are grateful that the National Kappa League chose to hold their Leadership Conference on our campus. The weekend, full of energy and excitement, provided a terrific opportunity to welcome hundreds of future leaders to our campus and to grow essential community partnerships,” said Gary Ritter, Ph.D., dean of SLU's School of Education. “I expect to see many of these students on our campus as Billikens over the next several years!”

Activities included a golf tournament, debate, poetry and math competitions, drone races, and an E-Gaming tournament.

Kappa League is part of Guide Right, a national service initiative of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Guide Right, the oldest and most successful mentoring organization for young people of color, impacting over 500,000 young lives. Since 1922, Guide Right has provided students the opportunity to be mentored by advisors, conduct community service, embark on college tours, obtain college scholarship, and prepare for careers in trades or entrepreneurship.

“For many of these young men, this was their first experience on a college campus and their first time traveling away from home,” said John Marshall Jones, national spokesperson for the Kappa League/Guide Right program. “SLU provided the perfect atmosphere to indoctrinate these young men into the college experience.”

About Kappa League

Kappa League is part of Guide Right, a national service initiative of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Kappa League is for the educational, occupational and social guidance of male students in grades sixth through 12. It was designed to help young men grow, receive, and develop their leadership talents in every phase of human endeavor.

About Saint Louis University  

Founded in 1818, Saint Louis University is one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious Catholic institutions. Rooted in Jesuit values and its pioneering history as the first university west of the Mississippi River, SLU offers more than 12,000 students a rigorous, transformative education of the whole person. At the core of the University’s diverse community of scholars is SLU’s service-focused mission, which challenges and prepares students to make the world a better, more just place. For more information, visit slu.edu.