Though we’re still holding online conferences (we know, we know…), we’ve decided to be a little more chill about it for the spring semester. Rather than sitting in front of Zoom for big chunks of your weekend, Region F will host individual presentations, events, and discussions, one per day, over four weeks in March and April. Choose what you’re most interested in, sign up for one event or all of them, it’s all up to you! Regardless of how and when you choose to attend, the Virtual Spring Conference will provide an excellent opportunity to engage in discussion and fun with your Brothers across the Region. All events are virtual, primarily over the Region F Zoom.
These sessions are open to ALL MEMBERS – active, pledge/new members, advisors, and alumni – chapters are encouraged to award members with appropriate credit toward their requirements for taking part. Please add these events to your chapter’s calendar with the links and your event credit.
They’re all in the evenings, both weekdays and weekends to make it accessible to as many people as possible. Will this be the last virtual conference we need to hold? Will we be able to meet in-person in the fall? We’ll have to wait and see, but until then, build yourself a customized event based on anything that looks interesting below!
As a bonus, every student attendee who attends a session during the Spring 2021 Region F Virtual Conference will be entered into a drawing for their choice of either a gift of membership into the APO Society of Life Members -or- a 2021-22 Region F Event Pass, which gives you free registration to all in-person region and section events for the next school year! Students will get one entry for each Virtual Conference event they attend, so the more you attend the more chances you have to win. Winners will be announced at the end of the Virtual Conference in late April. Sign up for your sessions at the links below!
Region F Virtual Spring Conference Schedule
Week 1
Monday, March 29 • 7:00-9:00 PM
All-Region Game Night (register here)
Come join APO members from around the region as we kick off our Spring 2021 Virtual Conference with a virtual game night featuring Jackbox Games! We’ll rotate through Lie Swatter, Fibbage, Quiplash, Drawful, and more.
Wednesday, March 31 • 7:30-8:30 PM
Getting the Most from APOonline (register here)
Presenter: Anthony Schmidt, Owner of APOonline and alumnus of Alpha Zeta chapter
APOonline is way more than just an event calendar and service hour tracking. In this session, we’ll dive deep into the features of your website like advanced membership reporting, unlockable achievements, award voting, inter-chapter events, and how to collect donations for your chapter or a cause you care about.
Thursday, April 1 • 7:30-8:30 PM
Post-Covid Leadership Development for Chapters (register here)
Presenter: Justin Martin, Region F Chair and Alpha Alpha alumnus
With the pandemic coming to an end, chapters will be looking for ways to bring back quality, effective leadership development (LD) programs. Having a solid LD program as a central piece of your chapter is not only something that will make your chapter work better, but will also help set you apart from the other organizations on your campus. Come learn some of the best practices to make LD both fun and worthwhile for your members.
Week 2
Monday, April 5 • 7:30-8:30 PM
DIY Strategies for Anxiety and Self-Care (register here)
Presenter: Andrea Gilman, MSW, OTR/L, Section E-3 Chair and Alpha Alpha alumna
Quarantine, zoom fatigue, anxiety, and sensory processing. Constant online meetings, classes, and isolation over the past year has taken a toll on us all physically, mentally, and emotionally. We were just not meant to function like this! Lets share experiences and discuss simple strategies to help process this increased stress and anxiety from a sensory perspective.
Tuesday, April 6 • 7:00-8:00 PM
Understanding Officer Portal (register here)
Presenter: Alli Tortorici, Chapter Consultant and Xi Phi alumna
Are you a current or aspiring chapter president, membership vice president, service vice president, treasurer, secretary, or pledge/new member educator? Join us for a comprehensive Officer Portal training that will leave you an expert on Fraternity reporting, finding resources, paying invoices, creating membership changes, and pulling reports!
Thursday, April 8 • 7:00-9:00 PM
All-Region Game Night: Among Us (register here)
Emergency meeting! Whether you have a knack for sniffing out who’s sus, or you’re an expert at venting, or you just like throwing people out the airlock, this game night is for you! In our second week of Virtual Conference fun, join your crewmates (and imposters) to play Among Us with APO members from around the region and beyond.
Saturday, April 10 • 1:00-4:00 PM
Region F Business Meeting (register here)
(3 hours, voting delegates required)
This is the big deal! The future of our chapters! The one required event! And it might not even take the whole three hours if we do it right. Choose your chapter’s two voting delegates and report them to your section chair by April 5, and we’ll knock out some business this Saturday afternoon real quick. Everyone may attend!
A joint meeting of the entire region for the purposes of conducting regional business will be followed by breakout meetings for each of the four geographic sections for the purpose of conducting sectional business and the annual election of the section chairs. We will reconvene at the end for the installation of the newly elected section chairs.
Sunday, April 11 • 7:30-8:30 PM
Service Roundtable (register here)
Presenter: Matthew Smith, Section F-4 Chair
Let’s talk service and learn from each other! This open-ended roundtable is for members to share their thoughts and ideas for service projects and programs, both in-person and virtual, that they have found to be the most effective and meaningful for their members. Come brag about your favorite projects that your chapter has developed and share ideas for what returning to campus looks like for your chapter’s service program.
Week 3
Monday, April 12 • 7:30-8:30 PM
Creating a Cohesive Exec Board (register here)
Presenters: Lee Piecoro, Section F-2 Chair and Beta Beta alumnus; presenter TBD from Zeta Gamma chapter
Teamwork makes the dream work! Keep your chapter’s pipeline to leadership flowing and its engine running smoothly with these tune-up tips. Even high-performance vehicles benefit from basic maintenance!
Tuesday, April 13 • 7:00-8:00 PM
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion through Alpha Phi Omega (register here)
Presenter: Candice Solomon-Strutz, National Diversity Program Chair and alumna of Alpha Alpha chapter
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is the fraternity’s newest appointed program. Come learn about what this committee is working on as well as learn about existing initiatives and efforts from other chapters.
Wednesday, April 14 • 7:00-9:00 PM
All-Region Game Night, Round 3 (register here)
Do you need vindication from our opening round of Jackbox games? Are you ready to dominate a different game, or be a part of a different team? Shake things up with another night of fun and games with your bros!
Thursday, April 15 • 7:30-8:30 PM
Preparing for Fully In-Person APO (register here)
Presenters: Lee Piecoro, Section F-2 Chair and Matthew Smith, Section F-4 Chair
It’s been over a year since APO has been able to operate our chapters at their full potential because of Covid. With the nation’s vaccination plan moving forward, though, it appears more and more likely that we will finally get back to being completely in-person. But what does that mean? There are now at least three pledge classes’ worth of members who have *never* had a full term’s experience with APO in-person. Let’s talk about what actually happens in-person, how some expectations are different, and what we can take from this virtual year and apply to our future events.
Sunday, April 18 • 7:30-8:30 PM
Crucial Conversation – Managing High Stakes Conflict (register here)
Presenter: Melody Martin, National Vice-President and alumna of Delta Alpha chapter
Crucial Conversations gives you the tools you need to step up to life’s most difficult and important conversations, say what’s on your mind, and achieve the positive resolutions you want. Learn how to; prepare for high-impact situations, make it safe to talk about almost anything, be persuasive, not abrasive, keep listening when others blow up or clam up, turn crucial conversations into the action and results you want.
Week 4
Monday, April 19 • 7:30-8:30 PM
Modern Chapter Communications (register here)
Presenters: Beth Voigt, Region F Communications and alumna of Sigma Sigma chapter; presenters TBD from Theta Epsilon and Sigma Sigma chapters
We’re not using binders any more! And with literally everything online during the pandemic, chapters have had to find new ways to make sure everyone stays connected. Hear from some of the chapters that have been trying new things, adapting old ways, and figuring out what works best in between.
Tuesday, April 20 • 7:30-8:30 PM
Service After College (register here)
Presenter: TBD
Graduation is on your horizon, but you’re afraid that you’ll have to give up on that LFS life when you get into the “real world”? Don’t worry, APO is something you are part of for life and we’ve got you covered! In this session we’ll talk about options for volunteering both with the fraternity, but also what kind of volunteer opportunities and programs exist outside of APO.
Wednesday, April 21 • 7:30-8:30 PM
The Future of Pledging – A Hybrid Model (register here)
Presenter: Brandyn Fairchild, National Membership Program Chair and alumnus of Theta Theta chapter
The pandemic has given us the opportunity to take pledge education in a more mixed online/offline format. Find out more about the resources available from the national fraternity! Learn how you can plan both virtually and physically to set your new members up for success as future Brothers of Alpha Phi Omega.
Thursday, April 22 • 7:00-9:00 PM
All-Region Game Night, Final Round! (register here)
Now’s your chance to go for the gold! We’re gonna close out our Spring Virtual Conference with one last game night. See who wins at everything, join in to see what you’ve been missing, or just log in to watch the fireworks as your brothers throw down. Victory!
We Hope You Can Join Us!
Make sure you register in advance and test out your best Zoom backgrounds ahead of time. You can even make it an event! Invite your whole chapter to attend as many of these sessions as you like. Count it as a leadership event, make it a fellowship, and bring back new information and connections in service to your chapter.
We hope to see LOTS of you there!
