AOII’s Promise to Our New Members
By Sarah Elliott, Delta Omega (Murray State University), Rituals, Traditions, and Jewelry Committee
Fall is always an exciting time for our chapters. A new school year has begun, everyone is excited to be back with their sisters, and new classes and opportunities are before you. It is also when many of our chapters participate in Fall Recruitment and choose new members to join our sisterhood. Welcome, New Members! We are thrilled you have chosen AOII, and we are so excited for you to learn more about our Fraternity.
The New Member period is a special time. You are here because we saw the heart of AOII in you. During your New Member period, you will learn all about our Founders and the history of AOII. You will get to know your New Member class and the chapter members. You will learn about leadership opportunities, our sisterhood and lifelong friendship.
After your Initiation, you may feel your time to learn about AOII has ended, but it has only just begun. You will learn what our sisterhood truly stands for, the Ritual that connects every member and makes us unique. Our Founders were adamant each member interpret Ritual for herself. Having a connection to our history, our sisters and our Ritual enriches our experience as a member of Alpha Omicron Pi. The stronger the connection each sister makes with each other and what we stand for, the stronger a chapter will be. Why did our Founders feel a conviction to start a new fraternity 125 years ago? As Stella George Stern Perry once said, “Your
Ritual will tell you. We wanted in a fraternity what is there.”
Our Ritual is what every chapter and every member have in common. It is the foundation that makes AOII the sisterhood that it is. Without that common bond, we wouldn’t be AOII. As you continue your relationship with AOII and our Ritual during your adult life, you’ll find new meaning during different periods of life. So be excited, new sisters, you have so much to learn about our sisterhood, the bond we all share, and what makes AOII the incredible and unique sisterhood that it is.
You may contact the Rituals, Traditions, and Jewelry Committee (RT&J) about anything Ritual-related at RT&J@alphaomicronpi.org