Amos-Leon’ Otis, a Tennessee State University alumnus and founder of award-winning SoBran, Inc., has received the prestigious Kappa Alpha Psi Laurel Wreath Award for exceptional achievements in entrepreneurship, civic leadership, and philanthropy.
The Laurel Wreath is the highest award presented to a member of Kappa Alpha Psi International Fraternity, Incorporated. It is given to members who exemplify extra meritorious achievements that are national or international in scope and effect. The award was established in 1924 to honor members of the fraternity who live up to, above and beyond the motto, “achievement in every field of human endeavor.”
Originally awarded to Otis on July 17, 2021, the Laurel Wreath was officially presented to him, in person, during the fraternity’s biennial conclave on July 18, 2023, in Tampa, Florida.
As cited by the Alexandria-Fairfax Alumni Chapter of the fraternity in its official petition, “Brother Amos-Leon’ Otis is deserving to be the recipient of the Kappa Alpha Psi Laurel Wreath Award based on exceptional achievement as reflected in the development of a highly representative commercial enterprise,” and,
“…in addition to his accomplishments as an entrepreneur, Brother Otis is renowned for his philanthropy. In 2011, he was one of the early contributors to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture with an eventual six-figure contribution. He has made multiple donations to his alma mater, Tennessee State University, starting with an endowed $100,000 scholarship and a donation of a million dollars for the construction of a named, alumni welcome center on its flagship Nashville campus.”
Otis, a Life Member of Kappa Alpha Psi, credited his success to the sacrifices of his mother.
“At the moment I was awarded the Laurel Wreath, I visualized my mother smiling and rejoicing in the satisfaction of knowing that all her hard work and sacrifice had come to fruition in her son,” he said.
Otis’s distinguished career began in 1965 as a commissioned officer in the United States Air Force. His duties took him through flight school and missile training. This led to him becoming a Missile Combat Crew Commander controlling the Titan II nuclear missile during the Cold War. After that assignment, he was selected to train with Philco-Ford, which gave him the foundational knowledge he would later use to run his own enterprise.
In 1987, Otis launched SoBran, Inc., offering innovative services in bioscience, engineering, logistics and mail security for the federal government, banks, corporations, high-wealth individuals, and professional sports organizations. Otis, who is president and chairman of the Board of SoBran, has grown the company into the multimillion-dollar business it is today. Through his leadership the company has gained wide recognition for its core strengths, successful partnerships and clients, and its continuous growth and profitability. SoBran has received the Department of Homeland Security’s Small Business Achievement Award, the Partnership for Reinventing Government Hammer Award, and was named a finalist for the Government Contracting Firm of the Year. The company also has been included twice in Inc. magazine’s list of “America’s 5,000 Fastest Growing Private Companies” and has ranked among the top 100 companies in Black Enterprise’s industrial/service category for 10 years. In addition to running SoBran, Otis also served as a director of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland for two, three-year terms.
Over the past decade, SoBran has donated over 10% of each year’s profits to non-profit organizations, disaster relief aid, numerous schools, academic camps, and affiliated Kappa organizations.