Beta Commission

Commissions elect and initiate graduates (and graduating seniors, faculty, staff, and administration) of their respective institutions.  Contact Jesse S. Lyons, Assistant Executive Director for Advancement, for any questions. Click here to recommend a potential brother for one of these commissions.

Founder(s): W. F. Pearson, W. M. Perdone, J. E. Hollingsworth

Established: March 8, 1868, by S. Z. Ammen and others of Alpha Chapter

Notes: Succeeded in 1915 as Beta Commission, established by Knight Commander S. Z. Ammen

Distinguished Alumni

• GEN George C. Marshall – Initiated 1901 – General of the Army; Chief of Staff, WW II; Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense; author of the “Marshall Plan”; Nobel Peace Prize Recipient
• Lemuel C. Shepherd, Jr. – Initiated 1917 – Four-Star General, Commandant, U.S. Marine Corps
• John D. deButts – Initiated 1936 – President and Chairman of American Telephone and Telegraph
• Richard E. Byrd – Initiated 1906 – Rear Admiral; Antarctic Explorer and Pilot
• GEN George S. Patton, Jr. – Initiated 1904 – Four-Star General, U.S. Army; Outstanding Combat Officer, WW II
• MG John Knapp – Initiated 1954 – Former Superintendent, Virginia Military Institute
• GEN J.H. Binford Peay II – Initiated 1962 – Four-Star General; Vice Chief of Staff, U.S. Army; Superintendent, Virginia Military Institute
• GEN Sam Walker – Initiated 1917 – Four-Star General; Commander, Allied Forces South East Europe; Former Superintendent, Virginia Military Institute 
• Daniel R. Neal, Jr. – Initiated 1876 – 8th Knight Commander of Kappa Alpha Order,  1877 to 1881
• Henry J. Foresman – Initiated 1941 – 26th Knight Commander of Kappa Alpha Order, 1965 to 1967
• BG Frank Johnson McCarthy, Jr. – Initiated 1933 – movie producer, won an Oscar in 1970