Alpha Phi Omega service fraternity, not sorority

To the Editor:

I was incredibly disappointed in the “More offbeat than
ugly” opinion column in Friday’s Daily due to its
erroneous and clearly biased information.

Alpha Phi Omega is a co-ed community-service fraternity, not a
sorority, and it is in no way affiliated with Interfraternity
Council, National Panhellenic or Greek Affairs.

It is unfortunate that Beau Mansfield is unwilling to
participate in a community-service activity because he
doesn’t feel he fits the “profile” of most
sororities.

However, for someone who is so obviously against the stereotypes
or profiles he mentions, he was certainly willing to unfairly
pigeonhole not only Alpha Phi Omega, but also the greek community.
To say that Alpha Phi Omega is “entrenched in [community
service] as a matter of tradition” is completely uncalled
for.

The supreme purpose of Alpha Phi Omega is community service.
There is no stereotypical Alpha Phi Omega brother. Our members
include people of every gender, race, creed and affiliation.

What unites the brothers of Alpha Phi Omega is not any sort of
“profile,” except perhaps the sincere desire to put
service to humanity ahead of selfish aims.

Alpha Phi Omega participates in several community-service
activities every week and regularly hosts service projects to aid
local organizations. The purpose of events such as Ugly Man on
Campus is to help any OU student actually do something for people
in need.

If Mansfield, or any other student, is truly interested in
helping the community, we would love to support more student
participation, no matter who the student is.

We have officially extended the deadline for UMOC. Please
contact Sarah Letourneau at SarahLetourneau@ou.edu if
interested.

— Jessica John. President, Alpha Phi Omega

 

Daily owes organization apology for misinformation

To the Editor:

It would be really helpful before bashing to get the names and
information right. I am a part of Alpha Phi Omega, a co-ed service
fraternity. We are far from the “traditional”
sorority/fraternity. We accept men and women of all races and
backgrounds, not just a select few.

The best part about APO is each member brings something to the
group. We all fit together, and that is what makes it such a
wonderful organization. Ugly Man on Campus is a charity we do every
spring semester to raise money.

There’s no “certain type of guy.” All we want
is men who would like to help raise money for a great cause.

Alpha Phi Omega is all about planning events to raise money for
charity. We are an organization based on service rather than on
being social. We are all joined together for one main
cause—to help humanity.

It might help if you checked out our Web site beforehand,
www.ou.edu/student/alpha-phi-omega/. From the start, you see what
we are about: “We are a co-ed, national, service-based
fraternity known around the world for our dedication to
humanity.”

The writer of this column, Beau Mansfield, should have
researched and gotten this info. Not only Mansfield, but also The
Daily owes a huge apology to the members of Alpha Phi Omega and
also the student body for misinforming them about who we are.
Please give the students the facts, not fiction.

— Crystal Johnson. Health and sport sciences senior
member, Alpha Phi Omega

 

Big 12 needs to correct bad basketball officiating

To the Editor:

After the Colorado game, Coach Sampson got reprimanded by the
Big 12 and the university.

The conference and university officials reprimanded the wrong
person. The officials are solely to blame.

After the Kansas game, it is evident just how bad these
officials are. Drew Lavender goes for a lay-up and is tackled. Does
the whistle blow? No.

Wayne Simien travels on almost every dunk attempt. Whistle blow?
No.

Jabahri Brown gets all ball at quarter court and should be a
no-call. The referees call the foul, and Brown is done for the
game.

Watching these two games has made me sick. The conference needs
to step up and start punishing these awful referees.

Kudos to Jabahri after picking up his fifth foul for standing up
to the dreadful refs. Coach Sampson, keep being vocal about the
poor officiating. The conference needs to listen sooner or
later.

- Daniel Shcolnik. Criminology junior
hello there & you too