AFA

2020-2021 Meetings Recap:

Association of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors

by Lauren Porter, Associate Board Member

What is AFA? They self-describe their purpose as “enhancing members’ abilities to foster impactful fraternity/ sorority experiences.” Conference attendees range from national board members like ourselves to advisors on the ground at campuses supporting a wide variety of Greek Letter Organizations (GLOs).

Over the years, AFA has brought our board members across the country from California to Massachusetts and everywhere in between. Yet, this year, we found ourselves in a new setting: online. While necessary, this presented new obstacles to overcome to network and learn together in a meaningful way. Despite the challenges, we were still able to make new connections with other organizations, Greek Life advisors, administrators, and experts in various fields and bring back valuable information to the rest of the National Board.

AFA Annual Meeting is a multi-day conference composed of keynotes, workshops, and networking spaces. We attended workshops that fell into two main categories: diversity, inclusion, and equity; and recruitment and meaningful active experiences during a pandemic.

“If you’re not uncomfortable while doing this work, you’re doing it wrong. Intent is not enough…. Anti-racism efforts are active, not passive…. If we’re not uncomfortable, we’re not going to grow in those places. Marginalization is an active process, so disrupting these practices must be an active process.” —Dr. Don C. Sawyer, III, Keynote Address

After the keynote address, we spent time in workshops around best practices and general inclusivity guidelines, how to look at who’s not being included in important conversations, making GLOs inclusive to the LGBTQ+ population, providing equitable opportunities for students with disabilities, and supporting non-traditional students. We talked about diversity and inclusion in regards to race and spread to other social identities as well. The workshops had a common theme: constant assessment and redirection is necessary, as well as honest self-reflection. We were charged with taking an active, ongoing process to build our organizations in an intentional way bit-by-bit to match our values.

In terms of recruitment and member experience, we learned about basic strategies to improve virtual recruitment for our organizations. We learned about overall themes we’ve seen in Greek Life during the pandemic, including both challenges and successes in this virtual era. In talking about member experiences, we focused a lot on how we provide additional resources and cultivate a membership experience that aligns with our values and provides the same growth and skills that someone during a pre-pandemic era would experience.

“Seize opportunities to drive change… things change. All the new opportunities we have revolve around technology as we work to drive membership.” —Phi Beta Sigma Leadership

We are grateful for our experience at AFA. Our chapter consultants, women’s issues committee, and VPM team in particular found great information and resources to foster growth in Kappa at an organizational level and continue supporting individual experiences of our members.