Fall 2019

Bella Bishop
Photos by Jorge Zamudio and Nicholas Clark
There is more than what meets the eye
when it comes to greek life on Old Dominion
University’s campus, especially when it
comes to the NPHC fraternity, Alpha Phi
Alpha (Alphas). Beyond the strolls, probates,
and colors they are men who seek to make
a difference in themselves and the community
around them. The brotherhood of these
men is a deep rooted life-long relationship
that they will carry beyond the yard of
ODU’s campus.
Joining a fraternity is making a lifetime commitment
to brotherhood, the community,
and empowerment within yourself. Contrary
to the partying stereotypes of fraternities,
the Alphas hold themselves to a
higher standard beyond just having a good
time. They believe in representing themselves
with strong character, honor and authenticity.
For a large group of young men
to have the equivalent strength of willingness
to learn, to never forget their deep
rooted brotherhood, and to hold each
other accountable to a higher standard as
human beings, is an incredible and honorable
accomplishment as a fraternity and as a
member within it. But having such a sturdy,
long lasting connection from generation to
generation all starts with a strong history.
The Alphas first originated in 1906 as a social
club for African American students at
Cornell University who were alienated from
attending their college classes. The professors
would do everything in their power
to restrict African American students from
attending classes or lectures. Seven students
then formed a social club to help each other
with school work, uplift one another to
pursue their dreams of getting an education,
and formed a strong bond to uplift their
community. The fraternity officially founded
a chapter on Old Dominion University’s
campus in 1977 and still upholds to this day
the same work ethic, humbleness, and loyalty
that it placed in the very beginning.
“I joined this fraternity because I wanted
to be a mentor for other people, and this
fraternity gave me an opportunity to channel
that. Last semester we did a weekly
mentorship and partnered with “Brother
to Brother” where young black men were
taught how to cook. We as the Alphas would
come in and speak to these kids that did
not really care about school or college. By
having them see us in our suits, being in
college and making a difference maybe it
would change their outlook on what they
are capable of,” said D’Andre Jones, Chapter
President. The Alphas feel it is important to
set an example to other black men and children
and encourage them to be their best
self. They do this by implementing outreach
programs where they work with the community
to set a positive example on being
successful. One of the programs the Alphas
host is “Go to high school, go to college”.
The purpose of this program is to educate
the youth about the opportunities they can
have after high school whether it is pursuing
a college degree, going to trade school, or
joining the military. The Alphas take pride in
having an influence and giving back to their
community.
“Being black I would say we definitely have
an obligation to put on a good image for
other black men to follow so they can be
leaders like us and that is a fundamental part
of our foundation [as an organization],” said
Mohamed Rebeiz, Intake Coordinator.
Each individual in the organization seeks to
have a leadership position in order to positively
influence the people around them.
They seek to lead by example and not get
distracted by the hysteria and stereotypical
greek life reputation.
“To impact other people is important. One
year we had a football camp for kids and
after they would play football outside, they
would go inside and learn about science and
technology, another year we went to feed
the homeless. We held a lot of programs
last year, one of them was informing others
on knowing their rights in circumstances
that may have you be encountered with
law enforcement. I did whatever I could to
get people to come out to that program
because I feel people do not know exactly
what their rights are. The main purpose of
these programs are to see how any piece of
my knowledge that I have can change your
life,” said Marcus Lee, Recording Secretary.
“I joined this organization because it gives
a platform to advocate for things you care
about… We have a responsibility to make
others strive for greatness.”
The Alphas are always on the move, constantly
striving to have a positive impact and
inform the campus community about political
and ethical issues,” said Negus Assefa,
Vice President. The brothers of Alpha Phi
Alpha seek to uphold their duty as a male
fraternity to strongly support women on
campus with their annual “ Mrs. Black and
Gold Pageant”. The pageant is a scholarship
opportunity for women at Old Dominion
University and strongly uplifts every woman
taking part in it. Scholarship pageant as an
extension of the fraternity. The contestants
are strong women who are active in the
community, successful students and uphold
the characteristics and traits of the fraternity.
Their main goals for young women is
not necessarily to win, but to develop confidence
in themselves, building character, and
to develop a strong sense of women-hood
for themselves and others around them.
Former pageant winners come back to help
the new contestants with their walks, give
them advice from their previous experience,
and to incorporate a strong sense of uplifting
each other as women.
“The pageant is actually really beautiful. One
thing a lot of girls don’t realize about the
pageant in the beginning is what they gain
from it. Some girls come in super shy and
soft spoken, but going through the pageant
they gain confidence and build character. By
the end of the pageant you won’t even know
what woman that is,” said Mohamed Rebeiz.
The pageant is also an opportunity for Alphas
to get a better understanding and perspective
to learn some of the struggles and
experiences that women face, and to help
the women participating in the pageant conquer
those insecurities or struggles in a respectful
and safe environment.
It would be a disservice to boil this group
of men down to just a fraternity label. From
the outside looking in, it can be seen as an
exclusive group of men who parade around
in colors and greek letters not knowing
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