Reflections on Executive Board Service

Ashley Barnes Dumat, Rho Omicron (Middle Tennessee State U). International Vice President

As I write this, I have just completed my last quarterly Executive Board meeting held at AOII International Headquarters. This past weekend was one full of gratitude, sisterhood, love, and reflection.

So much has changed since I was first elected to serve on the Alpha Omicron Pi Executive Board during International Convention 2019. Back then, I came to the Executive Board from being the Network 4 Director for just over three years. I was so excited to join the Executive Board, and I was extremely honored and humbled that my sisters would trust me to provide this level of leadership to the Fraternity. I wasn’t prepared, though, for the biggest lesson I would learn as a result of six years of Executive Board service: That Alpha Omicron Pi is exactly the type of women’s organization we need right now, at this moment.

One of the reasons our Fraternity was founded was that a group of women came together and decided to create a space specifically for themselves — A space where they could support each other, include each other, love each other, and share values and ideals. During my XB service, I have seen not only how that was true in 1897, but how it is still true, and even more importantly, crucial, in 2025.

AOII is an organization that has changed with the times throughout its existence. As membership grew over the years, the Fraternity offered new and different ways for women to have a meaningful membership experience, whether collegiate or alumnae. There have been so many opportunities for education, resources, and leadership created and utilized throughout the past several decades to help AOII women become the best versions of themselves. In the past six years, though, I have seen this Fraternity grow exponentially in how it serves our members, how it reaches members, and how it inspires our members.

COVID required AOII to pivot in infinitely many ways, from how to hold chapter meetings and Ritual to hosting a virtual Leadership Institute in 2020 and a virtual International Convention in 2021. We learned that by adding virtual platforms, AOII can reach and include even more sisters than ever before, which means more opportunities for connection, whether it be for training purposes or for a fun sisterhood get-together.

In the past six years, we have made changes in order to make AOII membership more diverse and inclusive, including changing AOII’s policy regarding legacies during recruitment. AOII has also made resources available to our members to help them navigate the world we live in today, including resources for mental health and wellness, interpersonal relationships and communication, leadership growth, and self care.

As I close out my Executive Board service, I am very proud of the decisions we have made and how we have continued to advance AOII’s interests. My hope is that AOII will continue to be a source of strength, comfort, and sisterhood for all sisters, both current and yet to come.