John R. Ross, FAIA, was Worthy Grand Architect of Alpha Rho Chi from 1981 to 1989. Initiated as a member of Andronicus Chapter in 1941, Ross was soon called to active duty as a U.S. Army Unit Commander in the Pacific theater of WWII. He returned to the University of Southern California to earn his Bachelor of Architecture in 1949. Ross maintained a private practice in San Luis Obispo while lecturing at Cal Poly and joining California Board of Architectural Examiners – becoming its president in 1970. An officer and director of National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), Ross served as NCARB president in 1979. As WGA, he was instrumental in establishing the Alpha Rho Chi Foundation in 1989. Ross briefly served as the Foundation’s first president until his death on June 6, 1990.