Callis assisted in the organization of several chapters, including Xi Lambda Chapter (1924) in Chicago and Alpha Nu Lambda (1928) in Tuskegee, AL. Callis was born in Rochester, New York, and attended Cornell University[2] and Rush Medical College.
[6] In 1971, Alpha Homes received an $11.5 million grant from HUD to begin groundbreaking on Channelwood Village with the Henry Arthur Callis Tower as its centerpiece.
[7] Callis died on November 12, 1974, in Washington, D.C. His death was a milestone for the fraternity as Callis became the last Jewel to enter its Omega Chapter—distinguished to contain the names of deceased fraternity members, and the Alpha Phi Alpha entered a period when it had no living "Jewels".
Callis was the second husband of poet Alice Dunbar; their marriage ended in divorce.
[8][9] His third wife was social worker, employment specialist Myra Colson Callis; they married in 1927, and she survived him.