Courtesy of Nu Upsilon Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated.
The Cannon/Dozier Project, a service project advocating drunk driving awareness, created by Ole Miss Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, was recently adopted by several chapters across the South as a region project.
The Cannon/Dozier Project is named after the death two young men of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Adrian Cannon of the Omicron Psi Chapter at Delta State University, and Julius Dozier, who was a member of the Nu Upsilon Chapter at Ole Miss. These two young men died due to a head on collision with a drunk driver in May 2008.
The two were best friends from New Albany, Miss. Cannon was a junior, member of the Delta State Marching Band, concert band and jazz band. Dozier was a junior, member of the Magna Cum Laude Honor Society and the University of Mississippi Marching Band.
According to fraternity documentation, the project itself has three phases. The first phase is education sessions for the Alpha Phi Alpha members, to expose problematic drinking patterns.
The second phase is community education sessions, one per semester, to expose the campus community to the detriments of drinking and alcoholism; sharing the Cannon/Dozier story.
The third phase is the promotion of an annual alcohol-free weekend. The weekend will include social activities, i.e. dance, step show, cookout. The event will be open to the public, and will promote having a good time without the use of alcohol.
“The goal of this project is to educate college students on the dangers of alcohol abuse, especially driving under the influence of alcohol,” University of Mississippi Nu Upsilon Chapter advisor Kenny Rogers said. “We hope to save the lives of many.”
The Nu Upsilon Chapter at Ole Miss has been the pilot of the program and the first to present the formal project.
The Cannon/Dozier Project was adopted as a region project March 22, 2014 at the annual Alpha Phi Alpha Southern Regional Conference, held in Chattanooga, Tenn.
“We are very proud our program has advanced to the regional level,” President of National Pan-Hellenic Council Joe Curry said. “It is astounding to know that every chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha in the Southern region will be participating in The Cannon/Dozier Project.”
States that adopted the project include: Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina.
Alpha Phi Alpha District Director, and member of the Southern Regional Board, Rickey Thigpen, made the final decision to pass the project region wide.
“Out of the 2,800 members in attendance at the conference, there was not one person who opposed the Cannon/Dozier Project,” Thigpen said. “The project was passed, no questions asked. It received a standing and roaring ovation.”
Thigpen said the Mississippi District is training the southern Alpha Phi Alpha chapters over the summer, and implementation of The Cannon/Dozier Project on those campus’s begin in fall.
According to President of Alpha Phi Alpha Nu Epsilon Chapter, Abdul Hamid, the Cannon/ Dozier Project will be presented by the Southern Region next March at the 2015 National General Convention in Charlotte, NC, where it is projected to become only the fifth National Program of the fraternity.
“Drunk driving is an enormous problem across our nation, and thousands of people have died from accidents that included drunk driving,” Curry said. “I feel that this alone justifies why The Cannon/Dozier Project should be a national program.”
“It’s an honor to represent the Nu Upsilon Chapter as the Cannon/Dozier Project spreads to become one of our National Projects,” Rogers said.
According to Rogers, Alpha Phi Alpha District of Mississippi adopted the Cannon/Dozier Project in its District Meeting January 2009. The Cannon-Dozier Project was created by the leaders of the Mississippi District at the time as they were leaving the Omega service of Julius Dozier and A.J. Cannon.
“An Omega service is one that honors brothers who have passed and effectively initiates them into the Omega Chapter for deceased brothers,” Rogers said. “They felt the need to prevent the pain caused by the death of the two young men by raising awareness for alcohol use and drunk driving. Thus, the Cannon-Dozier Project was born.”
According to Curry, the Nu Upsilon Chapter has integrated various events on campus here at the University of Mississippi, consisting of awareness events, church services, and memorial services for Julius Dozier and A.J. Cannon.
This year, Ole Miss Nu Upsilon Chapter held two events related to the Cannon/Dozier project.
According to Hamid, the first involved educating of high school students in Marks, MS, giving facts about alcohol use. Tre Dozier, brother of Julius, who is an active member of the Nu Upsilon Chapter, described his experience he went through they day his brother was killed in the aforementioned drunk driving accident in 2008.
The second event was a formal PowerPoint presentation, followed by another testimonial from Dozier. The presentation was shown to college students, most of who were members of National Pan-Hellenic Council Greek Letter Organizations.
“As a member, this program really hits home. Every family has close bonds within, and losing a family member is devastating,” Curry said. “I am proud to be a member of the Nu Upsilon Chapter, taking a stand against drunk driving and striving to increase community awareness on the issue.”
Other projects the fraternity are involved with include Project Alpha with the March of Dimes, Go-to-High-School Go-to-College, A Voteless People is A Hopeless People and Brother’s Keeper.
“We cover many different topics in raising awareness, but distracted driving was one that was not covered and should be,” Thigpen said. “We lose way too many people and we promised the parents of the deceased that their sons did not die in vain. We want to know that someone’s life is saved because of there sacrifice.”
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, alcohol-related car crashes kill someone every 31 minutes and injure someone every two minutes.
“It’s really sad how the choice of one person can drastically change the lives of so many,” Whitney Dozier, sister of Julius Dozier said. “Alcohol is a serious issue among our generation and I just hope the Cannon Dozier project accomplishes raising awareness.”
“Although, we are not finished with the program yet, the ultimate goal is to advance it to the National level, and we will not stop until that goal is accomplished,” Curry said.
