[19453] in APO-L
Re: APO Frat houses
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Matt Grabowski)
Thu Oct 22 21:04:34 1998
Date: Thu, 22 Oct 1998 21:04:28 -0400
Reply-To: Matt Grabowski <mattg@WPI.EDU>
From: Matt Grabowski <mattg@WPI.EDU>
To: APO-L@LISTSERV.IUPUI.EDU
In-Reply-To: <19981023001837.27660.rocketmail@send105.yahoomail.com>
Let's think about what we're discussing though. A house on the one hand
does not have to be a target. There are other coed fraternities on
campuses across the country with their own house. So there is president
for it.
Second, It does usually get you lumped in with the IFC if you have a house
and Greek letters. This can be good in that it gives you lots of contacts
and some good strings to pull on. On the down side you are most likely
going to be placed under the IFC rush rules on your campus if you are not
in some way already. This could hurt the organization and it's structure
for a while but might just attract more from that sect of people who just
have a bad image of fraternities in general.
Third, When you think of dues for a chapter when you have a house you have
to remember a few things. The chapter has to pay the school to insure the
chapter house. Usually the land is owned or part owned by the school that
the house is at which allows the fraternity to operate under the 501c3 of
the school to get out of some or all taxes that the school does not
automaticly pick up.
Fourth, In the purchasing and developing of a house it is not the chapter
that makes the initial purchase. When a new social chapter wants to go
about getting a house or purchasing a second house they have to make an
agreement with their alumni association. With new chapters the National
Fraternity usually surveys the alumni from other chapters living in the
area and seeks their support in such a matter. After this is done and an
alumni association is put together for the chapter then the alumni
association usually does all of the purchasing and works with the bank to
get a loan. Then the alumni association gives toward the house and in some
cases charges the members of the fraternity an amount per brother that they
promise to pay as dues.
Fifth, Most social chapters don't do anything without an active advisor
and an alumni association. These people keep records of how the house is
doing and make sure that the books are in order.
Sixth, It is housing for brothers. This is usually a cheaper form of
housing for brothers than either apartments or university housing, and
it can be maintained by the chapter and the alumni association as is
needed without waiting for the university to get to it. From here you can
also see that university security patrols it, university grounds crews
keep up the outside, and now schools are starting to offer internet access
into the fraternity houses.
The down sides:
The rules that socials are under at some campuses are very strict. This
would most likely hurt an APO chapter.
Many Greek systems presently have a bad wrap whether they deserve it or
not. With all the media about problems like the one at MIT where a student
pledging Phi Gamma Delta died and all the bad press that fraternities are
getting this might not be the best time to propose such an idea. But then
again history repeats itself so it's not like we won't ever have problems
like this again somewhere.
Alumni organizations would need to become very strong so as to be able to
help chapters get started up especially if buying a house within the first
10 years is a prospect.
The National Office would have to be able to provide more services and be
ready for more and different problems in chapters. That means that
national dues would have to rise by a large amount to pay for things like
more personell and insurance.
Chapter dues would increase by a large amount too. This could conflict with
our directive that says we make service available to everyone as a part of
Alpha Phi Omega. This would though include things like space to build and
store equipment for larger projects. Space to hold social events and
projects. Cooking facilities. etc.
_______________________________________________________________________________
Tomorrow time will change what is wrong / I feel a piece from the ocean
when it's calm / I've been lost in a poet's song / but I'll find my way
home, I know / I'll find my way home -BK1
