Re: Service Learning and Alpha Phi Omega Service Fraternity

Randy,
I find this description of your fraternal organization to be a great and
deep rooted example of ways in which members can be and have been of service
to their community. I am curious however, where is the learning associated
with the service?  You do not mention this in the description and it would
be instructive to hear how, at what level, and toward what ends your members
(brothers?) engage the reflective practices that connect the very evident
service work to learning experiences--be it interpersonal, intrapersonal, or
in larger socio-cultural-political-ethical spheres.

Just curious,

Matthew Goldwasser
----- Original Message -----
From: Randy Finder <naraht@DRYCAS.CLUB.CC.CMU.EDU>
To: <service-learning@csf.colorado.edu>
Sent: Friday, March 07, 2003 1:49 PM
Subject: Service Learning and Alpha Phi Omega Service Fraternity


> I thought I would post this as a organization which might be helpful on
> campus.  Feel free to contact myself or check the web page at the bottom
> for more information.
>
> Alpha Phi Omega strives to be a world-class service leadership collegiate
> fraternity.  APO was founded in 1925 by a group of former boy scouts who
> wanted to promote youth leadership.  Since that time, we have grown to be
> the largest greek letter organization with over 350 active chapters and
> over 13,000 active members.  The fraternity has changed a great deal in
> terms of relationships with a variety of youth organizations, membership
> (co-ed since 1976) and operate more as an honor society or club than a
> residential fraternity.  Chapters have a great deal of autonomy under the
> national policies they set at the biennial convention to decide and carry
> out their local programs.  The three principles that the fraternity is
> based upon is leadership, friendship and service.  How this plays out on
> local campuses is that APO draws a diverse membership from former youth
> group leaders (boy scouts, girl scouts, key club), students drawn by the
> idea of a different kind of fraternal organization and students who join
> based upon a particular activity or person that attracts them.
>
> The Service in Alpha Phi Omega is focused in four areas: Service to the
> Nation as a Participating Citizen (voter registration, fund-raising for
> national charities or causes), Service to the Community (working with
> local community groups to provide labor, publicity or fund-raise), Service
> to the Campus (ushering, campus clean-ups, running a lost and found,
> escort services, etc.) and Service to the Fraternity (through elected or
> appointed leadership, chairing projects, fund-raising for the chapter,
> attending conferences and conventions, etc).  Some chapters have
> accomplished significant projects such as historical restoration of old
> houses, training members in clowning to entertain local youth, teaching a
> large number of youth members skills to earn recognition with their
> organizations, creating playgrounds in underfunded areas, etc.  However,
> chapters vary a great deal in this regard.
>
> Each chapter is required to recruit an advisory committee consisting of
> faculty, staff, community leaders and/or alumni.  Some chapters have
> long-standing relationships with the campus administration, some of whom
> are honorary or alumni members.  APO has no formal relationship to the
> academic curriculum thought we count as members professors around the
> country who sometimes also serve on the National Board of Directors.
> Scholarship has not been a major program area in the history of the
> fraternity, but chapters are required to follow campus guidelines and
> policies where they exist for organizational involvement and minimum grade
> point average.  Some chapters host study groups, but this has not been
> formalized above the chapter level.
>
> Many of our members are involved with formal service-learning activities.
> However, we do not currently track this.  The fraternity is supported by a
> strong backbone of alumni volunteers who help chapters connect with the
> community and support their viability.  Alumni of the fraternity include
> former presidents, ambassadors, social workers and teachers.  We have a
> large and influential but administratively separate fraternity and
> sorority at most of the college campuses in the Philippines with a large
> alumni presence around the world.
>
>
> Our National web site is www.apo.org
>
>
>
> Yours in Leadership, Friendship and Service
> Randolph Finder
>
>
> --
> Leadership, Friendship and Service - Alpha Phi Omega
>
>
>
>