Pledge Duties
 

As of early 1946...

The following is a list of pledge duties you must perform before you are eligible for initiation into active membership in Alpha Phi Omega. These may be supplemented by other duties that bear a definite relationship to your chapter.

1. Do a specific project as prescribed by your chapter, in one or more of the following fields:

a. Service to your college or university.
b. Service to your community.
c. Service to the nation in the war effort.
d. Service to your chapter.

2. Wear the official pledge button at all times when the coat is worn.
3. Before time for your initiation, know the following:

a. Place and date of the founding of Alpha Phi Omega
b. Location of the national office.
c. Names and titles of the chapter officers.
d. The purpose of the fraternity (see national constitution)
e. The acquaintance of all men in the chapter. (This fifth requirement may be carried out as the chapter sees fit. Some may wish to require the pledges to secure the signatures of all active, advisory and honorary members, while other chapters may find different means of helping the pledges get acquainted.

It's nice to know that things have largely remained the same.

Agreed. I got this out of the Pledge Manual for someone who pledged in Spring 1946. I'm sure that the 'war effort' part was ignored at the time...

Replace the "all men in" with "all members of" and replace #2 with something about the 6 S's and I think you are just about ready to go in the year 2010!

How Funny
 

If these are the requirements for Initiation, only myself and 1 other Brother would be in the chapter.

It's nice to know that when I was designing my chapter's pledge program I was on target with what was originally taught. I didn't have this list (and at the time never thought of looking too much at the national documents) but these were the requirements that I forced through on my chapter. Unfortunately, after I left the brethren felt this was too stringent and watered down the program. Oh, well

Keep in mind, initiation is the official term for the ceremony that you go through to become an active member, not the ceremony you go through to become a pledge.

Pledge Ceremony -> called "initiation" by most people
Initiation -> called "activation" by most people

Not sure how/why people call them different things, but it is what it is.

Wow, most people are dumb.

Sorry, it's true though.

Maybe it's a regional thing? Just about every chapter I encounter here the midwest uses the incorrect terms.

I KNOW what I said. I meant Initiation as in the ceremony that you go through to become an Active Brother. Only two people (me and somebody else) in the chapter know the material that all Brothers are supposed to know by Initiation.

In the North Pledge Ceremony is called Induction, Brother Ceremony is called Initiation

wow, that's super dumb. 88lover has the correct terms...induction and initiation.

No, the correct terms are Pledge Ceremony and Initiation. Induction is just as dumb as using "Initiation" and "Activation"

I'm way out of my lane, I know . . .

. . . but this made me curious. In just a few minutes, I found a variety of uses at APO's national website. While the national bylaws refer to the "Pledge Ceremony," the Pledge Trainer's Handbook (p. 4) says,

The first and last steps in the pledge process are the Fraternity’s Induction and Initiation Ceremonies.

FWIW.

/back to my lane.

No it's not.

You have a decal issued by the Senusret I Swerving Authority which allows you in this lane.

Grievances can be filed with me directly.

Many thanks. Again, you = awesomeness.

You're welcome to come into this lane, and I appreciate a good debate. However...

The Pledge Trainer handbook is not an authoritative document, while the national bylaws are. The content of any of the Leadership Series manuals are not voted on by national convention, and are at best a guideline. I'll look at my ritual book when I get home, but I'm 95% confident it does not say induction, it says Pledge Ceremony. The national pledging standards refer to the Pledge Ritual, not Induction. Since National Bylaws, Pledge Standards, Rituals, etc. are voted on by convention, they carry much more weight than a guide put together by alumni volunteers.

FWIW, the Leadership Series has been for all intents and purposes replaced by the APO IMPACT guides and manuals,