Portland State student Dramaine Irions, 22, recently received the E. Lionel Davis Award for Undergraduate Achievement from Kappa Alpha Psi. This is the second year in a row that Irions has received this honor.
Irions is the president of the Delta Alpha chapter, Portland State’s chapter, of Kappa Alpha Psi [KAP], an African American fraternity.
Fellow fraternity brothers voted as a chapter that Irions would represent the chapter for individual achievement.
“I was actually very surprised,” Irions said.
Irions’ area of focus is leadership and student involvement. The 13 members of this particular chapter have a variety of talents from athletics to academic achievements.
Ten of the fraternity brothers are from Portland State University, two from University of Oregon and one from Linfield College.
The fraternity’s motto is “Achievement in every field of human endeavor.” It is apparent that this fraternity lives by that motto.
The Delta Alpha Chapter of KAP received several awards. They won the Undergraduate Chapter Achievement, Recognition for Services and Community Service Awards.
“What separates us is what we do individually that contributes to us as a chapter,” Irions said.
What also separates this fraternity is that it has not been active very long. Irions and two other people reactivated the fraternity in fall of 1999. “The very existence of the Delta Alpha Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity at Portland State University supports the university’s said commitment to diversity,” Irions said.
This fraternity is definitely different from the rest. Other chapters in their region were more established and have more resources, but this local chapter still managed to take home the awards.
Irions said that they have high quality committed individuals. He acknowledges that is somewhat difficult, just from the standpoint that everyone is so involved in other activities.
Irions will not return for a third year as the president of the fraternity.”I’ve been able to work with and learn from very special people. It has been a task at times, but very rewarding,” Irions said.
Apparently, more people are paying attention to Irions’ accomplishments. He was recently voted junior vice president in the Western Division of the fraternity. This is the top undergraduate position on the West Coast for KAP.Irions has only been in office two weeks and already the workload is challenging.
His plans this year include implementing an undergraduate West Coast Collective Service Project. What the service project would entail is that every chapter does the same thing at roughly the same time. The two areas Irions is considering is AIDS Awareness Project or working with the juvenile detention centers in some capacity.
Irions has been a part of myriad of activities at Portland State University.”One of my philosophies is to share the knowledge that I gain from my experiences,” Irions said.
Irions uses his different roles around campus to share his knowledge. He is not only the president of KAP, but also co-coordinator for the Black Cultural Awareness Board and a resident manager for West Hall.
He also assisted with Black History Month. Portland State University students saw the largest range of events ever this year for Black History Month. “It was effective because we were able to organize a breadth of events to take part in the month of February,” Irions said.
Events were schedule from February 1 through March 3. Irions stated the importance of this was that black history awareness should not be for just one month. Next year he plans to have events from January until March.Irions has also used College Housing Northwest’s monthly newsletter Housing Highlights, as a mechanism to write about Black History Month and sexual responsibility.
Irions explained how all of his training has paid off. He said he has been able to put all that knowledge to work and apply it to the “real world.”
This junior is contemplating applying to law school after he graduates.There will be an informational interest meeting about the Delta Alpha chapter of KAP on Wednesday, May 2, at 8 p.m. in Smith 294. Those interested need to wear business attire and to bring along a copy of their transcripts.