[6917] in APO-L
Re: Advisors
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Lisa Martina Covi)
Thu Oct 14 02:14:22 1993
Date: Wed, 13 Oct 1993 16:54:27 -0700
Reply-To: Lisa Martina Covi <covi@cliff.ics.uci.edu>
From: Lisa Martina Covi <covi@cliff.ics.uci.edu>
To: Multiple recipients of list APO-L <APO-L%PURCCVM.BITNET@mitvma.mit.edu>
In-Reply-To: Your message of "Wed,
13 Oct 1993 12:07:37 EDT." <9310130926.aa26273@Paris.ics.uci.edu>
Picking up on Matt's question:
What kind of duties do you all have for aadvisors?
How do you utilize them so that they feel apart of the
organization? etc. etc.
I'd like to do an informal poll of current actives on APO-L for a
workshop I'm doing this weekend on advisors. Please answer
even/especially if you don't know some of the answers. Please include
your chapter name or school in your reply.
1. how many advisors do you have?
2. What events if any do they attend?
3. Are they alumni of APO?
4. Are they alumni of your chapter?
5. What do they do in real life?
6. How have they helped your chapter?
---end of poll
There is a helpful newly printed Advisor's handbook (a glossy
publication available from the National office) which is particularly
helpful to advisors not previously affiliated with APO. However, just
as when you make a new friend, each chapter must mutually decide what
relationship is best for the chapter and for the advisor.
*Meet the chapter brothers, particularly the officers and the
president whom the advisor "should" (IMHO) work most closely with.
This should be done at least once each pledge period.
*Invite the advisor to events where you can make use of the advisor's
expertise - chapter planning events, service committee meetings,
ceremonies, installations, recognitions, etc. and when they are new,
make sure someone sits next to them and explains what is happening -
good hospitality (imagine inviting a friend not of your religion to a
religious service - some things have to be explained).
*Solicit the advisor's feedback on what the advisor really thinks of
the group and the experiences. Are they uncomfortable with anything?
What do they feel are your groups' strengths and weaknesses? Do they
have any ideas of how to improve the group?
*Make sure that the advisors get feedback on what kind of job the
chapter things they're doing. Everything from "I'm really glad you
came," to "we really appreciate your arranging this for us" to "We
haven't seen you around much - is anything wrong?" and "We really have
to resolve this ourselves this time, but we really appreciate your
input."
I feel the key to utilizing advisors is communication. But
communication can be difficult when age differences, differences in
lifestyles (i.e. advisors with families), differences in priorities
(i.e. other volunteer opportunities available to the advisor) are not
considered. From an advisory point of view, I sometimes feel
uncomfortable with a new group that I don't know and frankly don't
often have a lot in common with. Different chapters have different
ways of making you feel welcome, but one example that sticks out to me
is that at Epsilon Mu, University of Maryland, the pledges would
always take the initiative to introduce themselves and ask me about
myself and my experiences even if only because they had to get a
signature for their pledge book (but it didn't seem that way).
in friendship
Lisa Covi
Section 1 Staff
