safety, and modernization of the penal code. In 1972, after being denied accommodation by the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania-based Moose Lodge as the guest of a white member, Irvis was party to a case in the U.S. Supreme Court, Moose Lodge No. 107 v. Irvis, in which the Court upheld the right of the Moose Lodge to discriminate as a private club on the basis of race; the racial discrimination policy was ended by Moose International Inc. within a year of the Supreme Court ruling. In 1977 he was voted unanimously by the representatives for the role of speaker of the house. His most noted achievements include the passage of legislation creating the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency and Equal Opportunity Program, the state's community college system, the Minority Business Development Authority, and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. He is also largely responsible for the Pennsylvania House Ethics Committee, lobbyist registration, and the Legislative Audit Advisory Commission. Later life In 1988, the same year that he retired from politics, Irvis published collected poems under the title This Land of Fire (), issued by Temple University. He also worked in making wood sculptures and displayed them. His wood sculptures have been displayed in exhibits throughout the country. He died at age 86 of cancer. Honors Among the organizations to have formally honored Irvis are the NAACP, University of Pennsylvania, Lincoln University of Pennsylvania, and Dominion Resources The University of Pittsburgh has a K. Leroy Irvis Reading Room in Hillman Library. In 2003, the South Office Building within the Pennsylvania Capitol Complex was renamed the Speaker K. Leroy Irvis Office Building. On March 25, 2013, the Community College of Allegheny County hosted a ceremony for the newly completed K. Leroy Irvis Science Center, named in honor of his work in helping to establish the community college system in Pennsylvania and for his long career of service on behalf of Allegheny County. In 2017, the University of Pittsburgh renamed Pennsylvania Hall, a student residence hall on its upper campus, to the K. Leroy Irvis Hall in his honor. Pennsylvania Democratic Party Chairman T. J. Rooney described Rep. Irvis as, "one of greatest legislative giants that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has ever seen ... [and] one of the most admired and respected Pennsylvanians we'll ever know." Personal life Irvis married Katharyne Jones, and they had a son Reginald and daughter