ALPHA ATHLETES - The Sphinx Magazine

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have a 2.5 grade point average and above. The program is designed to be replicated across the country. Initially the agreement has a five year commitment, running through the year 2012. If we find another corporate partner willing to participate in this program at the same level, Wells Fargo Financial will invest an additional $25,000 to help grow the program. We need to aggressively seek additional corporate partners. More partnerships equates to more internships and more revenue. BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF AMERICA: Brothers, you have heard me continuously convey the urgency of answering the call to service by becoming mentors with Big Brothers Big Sisters of America. You have seen and visited their booths and kiosks at our regional and national conventions. You have read articles, received emails and phone calls, and viewed TV commercials during the Super Bowl or during March Madness asking you to become Big Brothers. You have been bombarded with appeals from your leadership. During my State of the Fraternity Address at our Centennial Convention, I invited 10,000 Alpha men to stand up and enroll as Big Brothers. There were a number of you who heard the call— and who answered the call—in our enduring crusade to touch and influence the lives of young people. Many of these youngsters are facing a dismal abyss and have to make a choice between the contentious forces that are fighting for their very souls. There is an expression that is used by today’s youth. It is “Man Up”. The definition, according to urbandictionary.com, is: “to fulfill your responsibilities as a man, to work through impediments and obstacles without whining”. There are young people in our community who are waiting for Alpha men to be Alpha men—To Stand Up, Man Up and then Follow Up! That’s what Alpha men do. That’s what leaders do. The goal of recruiting 10,000 Alpha Brothers has not yet been met. We are not there Brothers but we are well on our way. There has been a definite boost in both enrollment and services rendered by Alpha men. Many more have come forward but we still need more Brothers to stand up. I’ll tell you some success stories in a minute. Some of you who are part time Alpha men—those of you who claim to be Alpha men when it is convenient—chose to challenge the legitimacy of the mandate. Some of you said it was “ridiculous to set a goal that high. The goal never should have been set that high.” I say to you that leaders Stand Up, Man Up and then they Follow Up! Visionary leaders set big, hairy, audacious goals. It’s called vision, a quality that all Alpha men should possess, especially anyone who desires to be become a leader in this great 80 Fall • Winter 2008 The Sphinx: www.APA1906.net Fraternity. Leadership is about setting goals—big goals and then attaining those goals. Hundreds of Brothers have responded to my summons in significant ways. For example, 100 percent of the Brothers in Beta Gamma Chapter at Virginia State University are mentoring as Big Brothers. Eta Epsilon Chapter at the University of North Texas has 80 percent of its Chapter matched with a Little; and Brother Robert Daniels, a graduating senior and a registered Big Brother, was recently hired as an on campus recruiter. They have founded an organization on campus to recruit other students. NFL player and San Diego Charger Brother Roman Oben is making such an impact mentoring as a Big Brother, a donor and an advocate that he was designated The Big Man of the Year for the San Diego BBBS affiliate. That’s what Alpha men do! I defy you to show me any man in this room that can’t commit just four hours a month to make a difference in a child’s life. We must Stand Up, Man Up and then Follow Up! When people see us they say: “There goes an Alpha man.” Our brand implies: “There goes a man to help uplift the lives of wholesome youth.” MARCH OF DIMES: You know about our partnership with the March of Dimes – Walk for Babies initiative, formerly known as WalkAmerica. That’s how we raise the money that funds our Project Alpha programs. During the years 2001-2004, we annually raised an average of $74,000 nationally for WalkAmerica. In 2004, our best year over that four-year period, Alpha Phi Alpha raised $89,125. We didn’t have a goal. We told Brothers to “Just do it.” In 2005, my first year as General President, I met with the Brothers who made up our MOD team at the March of Dimes headquarters in White Plains, New York. We attended a two-day volunteer training. At that time, I set a goal of $200,000. It was a stretch but I knew we were capable of doing much better than we had previously. Once again the part time Alphas started saying it was “ridiculous to set a goal that high. That goal never should have been set that high”. That year we raised $134,754. We were shy of our goal— never-the-less it was a significant increase over our previous efforts. In 2006, we achieved an all time high of $181,105, yet we were still second to the Zeta Phi Beta Sorority in MOD fundraising. Imagine—Alpha Phi Alpha being second to the Zetas. But in 2007, we claimed the number one position amongst the MOD category for clubs and organizations by raising a total of nearly $240,000. There is still a great need for more Brothers to step forward. I say to you that leaders Stand Up, Man Up and They Follow Up! Alpha men are leaders. Again, “only those who go too far know how far they can go.”
“ America knows we are here. America knows we are needed. ” America is now waiting to see what we will do next. We must not disappoint ourselves and in-turn disappoint America. We must continue to grow. We must continue to operate in a sound manner, exercising good practices in our chapters and at our national headquarters. GENERAL PRESIDENT DARRYL R. MATTHEWS, SR. INTAKE My Brothers, this is the last time that I will deliver the State of the Fraternity Address. I will continue to serve you through the end I have heard concerns from some of you about the intake of the year. process. I have appointed a task force on intake. It is chaired by Please know that during my term, we have had some incred- Brother Arthur McDade, Southwestern Region Vice President, ible moments, including the ceremonial groundbreaking at the whose charge is to examine our current process and identify site of the MLK National Memorial; the recognition of the opportunities for improvement, material deficiencies and, if nec- Fraternity in media outlets across the country on a variety of essary, develop a process that incorporates those elements that issues; the celebration of the Fraternity’s centennial in you feel are essential—provided they are reasonable and Washington, D.C., and more. acceptable. America knows we are here. America knows we are needed. The charge I gave to the task force is three fold: America is now waiting to see what we will do next. • Understand that pledging, as we know it, is gone and never We must not disappoint ourselves and in-turn disappoint coming back again; • The modifications to the process have to be acceptable to the colleges and universities where our College Chapters reside; and • The process has to be one that would not increase our liability with regard to risky behaviors. Frankly, there are underground and unacceptable activities taking place under the aegis of “making them right”. We have talked about it before. We will not belabor the discussion. If you break the rules, you put everyone at risk, including yourselves, your families, your colleges and universities, and your Fraternity. We have been here for 102 years. We will not allow anyone to cast us away because of some foolish notion that is illegal in every court of law in the nation. America. We must continue to grow. We must continue to operate in a sound manner, exercising good practices in our chapters and at our national headquarters. Leadership is about more than the ceremonial events and picture taking. It is hard work. It is endless work. It is necessary work. I have enjoyed the journey. I have sought to build on the legacy of those who preceded me and I think I have steered this great ship of Alpha through some rough currents and through some memorable adventures. The numbers reflect our success. My work is not yet done. And I will say as I did when I took the Oath of Office: “Each day when I wake, I will be thinking of you and our great Fraternity—Alpha Phi Alpha. The Sphinx: www.APA1906.net Fall • Winter 2008 81
Page 1 and 2: OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST BROTHER JESSE
Page 3 and 4: ALPHA ATHLETE: ALL AMERICAN PENN ST
Page 5 and 6: Above: Brother John Woodruff. Photo
Page 7 and 8: onships while attending Seton Hall
Page 9 and 10: citizens home, known as Brookline,
Page 11 and 12: gave remarks and presented certific
Page 13 and 14: Louis community. The mission of CTO
Page 15 and 16: NU MU LAMBDA Decatur, GA Mentoring
Page 17 and 18: the Dallas Morning News and feature
Page 19 and 20: FRATERNITY’S FIRST CAUCASIAN BROT
Page 21 and 22: Editor’s Note: Thirty-second Gene
Page 23: “ I am told that this group of me
Page 27 and 28: CONVENTION HIGHLIGHTS 3 4 8 9 8 Bro
Page 29 and 30: 102ND ANNIVERSARY CONVENTION NBC’
Page 31 and 32: 102ND ANNIVERSARY CONVENTION G.P. D
Page 33 and 34: 102ND ANNIVERSARY CONVENTION Brothe
Page 35 and 36: 102ND ANNIVERSARY CONVENTION Army C
Page 37 and 38: GOING WHERE WE SHOULD BE Editor’s
Page 39 and 40: What scientists will also tell you
Page 41 and 42: Board, was applauded by the March o
Page 43 and 44: need for cash. The first test of fi
Page 45 and 46: Success by Instinct: What Animals A
Page 47: members to be supportive of other t
Page 50 and 51: OMEGA CHAPTER Brother Kermit H. Bos
Page 52 and 53: OMEGA CHAPTER tice in Portsmouth in
Page 54 and 55: CORPORATE DIRECTORY 110 The Seven J
Page 56 and 57: LEADERSHIP DIRECTORY ALPHA PHI ALPH
Page 58: NEW ORLEANS COME BACK TO THE BIG EA

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