Julius W. Becton Jr.

Julius Wesley Becton Jr. (June 29, 1926 – November 28, 2023) was a United States Army lieutenant general, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and education administrator.

He separated from the Army in 1946 but returned to service after President Harry S. Truman's executive order to integrate the U.S. Armed Forces in 1948.

From 1984 to 1985, he served as the Director of the Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance in the United States Agency for International Development (US AID).

President Becton was the first graduate of Prairie View A&M University to attain flag rank in the military.

He was part of a group of retired military officers who spoke in favor of affirmative action to defend national security.

The South Korean ambassador to the United States Yang Sung-chul , Secretary of the Army Thomas E. White , and Becton at a July 2001 wreath-laying ceremony for African-American veterans of the Korean War .
Becton (left) with FEMA director Brock Long in 2018