Henry Ponder (born 1928 in

Wewoka, Oklahoma Wewoka is a city in Seminole County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,271 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Seminole County. Founded by a freedman, John Coheia, and Black Seminoles in January, 1849, Wewoka is the capital ...

) is a

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

educator. Ponder received his undergraduate, masters, and doctorate degree from

Langston University Langston University (LU) is a public land-grant historically black university in Langston, Oklahoma. It is the only historically black college in the state. Though located in a rural setting east of Guthrie, Langston also serves an urban missio ...

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

. He went on to serve as the president of

Talladega College Talladega College is a private historically black college in Talladega, Alabama. It is Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, ...

Benedict College Benedict College is a private historically black college in Columbia, South Carolina. Founded in 1870 by northern Baptists, it was originally a teachers' college. It has since expanded to offer majors in many disciplines across the liberal arts ...

, and

Fisk University Fisk University is a private historically black liberal arts college in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1866 and its campus is a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1930, Fisk was the first Africa ...

. Ponder was the 28th General President of

Alpha Phi Alpha Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. () is the oldest intercollegiate historically African American fraternity. It was initially a literary and social studies club organized in the 1905–1906 school year at Cornell University but later evolved int ...

fraternity, the first Greek-letter collegiate

organization An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived from ...

established for African Americans. He is the vice-chairman the fraternity's ''World Policy Council'', a

think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...

whose purpose is to expand Alpha Phi Alpha's involvement in politics, and social and current policy to encompass international concern

Sources

* 1928 births Fisk University faculty Alpha Phi Alpha presidents Langston University alumni Oklahoma State University alumni Ohio State University alumni Living people Presidents of Talladega College {{US-academic-administrator-1920s-stub