What Inclusive Chapters Actually Feel Like

Service That Matters

Episode 6: Service That Matters Welcome to Leading for Good: The Alpha Phi Omega Story—the national podcast where we explore how leadership, friendship, and service shape who we become.   In this episode, Chris Meschuk sits down with Lilly Thomson from the Gamma Upsilon Chapter at Tulane University and Max Green from the Theta Alpha Chapter at Stevens Institute of Technology to explore what meaningful service actually looks like inside Alpha Phi Omega.   This conversation goes beyond service hours and asks a deeper question: what makes service truly matter? In this episode, you’ll hear: * The difference between transactional service and relationship-driven service * How Lilly built a nonprofit supporting students in the Dominican Republic * How Max’s chapter creates hands-on STEM experiences for local families * Why long-term community relationships matter more than checking a box * Practical ways chapters can create more impactful service programs   If you’re an active Alpha Phi Omega member thinking about how your chapter serves its campus and community, this episode offers practical ideas for creating service experiences that are meaningful, sustainable, and deeply connected to the people you serve.    Memorable Quotes “Helping is useful. Helping is kind. Mattering is different. Mattering means the community would notice if you were gone.” “When people have passion involved, it makes it more meaningful and overall just grow into an incredible relationship.” “The service that actually becomes the most meaningful… it’s almost always rooted in friendship.”   About Our Guests Lilly Thomson is a member of the Gamma Upsilon Chapter at Tulane University, where she has served on application committee, philanthropy committee, and as chapter president. She is also the founder of Pencils of Passion, a nonprofit connecting communities in Oklahoma with schools in the Dominican Republic through school supply drives and educational support initiatives. https://pencilswithpassion.com/ [https://pencilswithpassion.com/]   Max Green is a member of the Theta Alpha Chapter at Stevens Institute of Technology and has served as outreach chair for the past two years. Through his leadership, he has helped coordinate large-scale campus and community service initiatives focused on STEM education, youth outreach, and relationship-building with local organizations.   Key Takeaways 1. Pick one partnership and go deeper. 2. Replace one assumption with a question. 3. Talk about meaning, not just hours.   Chapter Discussion Prompt Bring this question to your next chapter meeting: Which of our current service partnerships feels the most meaningful to our chapter — and why?   Get Involved Idea, Comment, or Nominate a future guest: https://forms.gle/mWmhGVHEUNw4vtcGA [https://forms.gle/mWmhGVHEUNw4vtcGA] Submit to the APO Soundbites segment: https://forms.gle/KgJrSnFB2z3MPC3s5 [https://forms.gle/KgJrSnFB2z3MPC3s5] Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apostaff/ [https://www.instagram.com/apostaff/] Share this episode with your chapter group chat or listen together at your next meeting.

What Inclusive Chapters Actually Feel Like

1. Opening Hook + Summary Welcome to Leading for Good: The Alpha Phi Omega Story—the national podcast where we explore how leadership, friendship, and service shape who we become. In this episode, Chris Meschuk sits down with Aarushi Bafna (Alpha Alpha) and Natalie Raabe (Alpha Iota) to explore what inclusion actually looks like inside an APO chapter—and where it quietly breaks down. In this conversation, you’ll hear: * The difference between “open doors” and true belonging * Real moments where members felt included—and where they didn’t * How small chapter habits unintentionally exclude people * Practical ways leaders can build a culture where everyone feels seen If you’re an active Alpha Phi Omega member thinking about chapter culture, member retention, or leadership impact, this episode challenges you to rethink what inclusion really means—and how to build it intentionally.   2. What We Cover in This Episode · Why inclusion is an experience—not a policy · The “technically present, but not quite in” feeling · How shared experiences (service, retreats, families) build belonging · Where chapters unintentionally lose members · Practical ways to create inclusion this week   3. Memorable Quotes “Open doors don’t automatically make people feel welcome.” “Inclusion isn’t something you announce—it’s something people experience.” “It’s not about being in the room. It’s about feeling like you belong in it.”   4. About Our Guests Aarushi Bafna is the current president of the Alpha Alpha Chapter, where she has served as pledge trainer, executive vice president, and a leader focused on strengthening chapter culture and connection. Her leadership journey reflects a strong commitment to building inclusive, relationship-driven chapters. Natalie Raabe is a member of the Alpha Iota Chapter at The Ohio State University and incoming chapter president. Since joining as a freshman, she has held multiple leadership roles and is passionate about creating spaces where members feel welcomed, supported, and connected.   5. Key Takeaways 1. Have one conversation with a member you don’t know well. Not about chapter business. Just about them. 2. At your next chapter meeting, notice who isn’t talking. Not to call them out — but to create a moment where they could. 3. Ask one member privately: “How are you experiencing the chapter right now?” Then just listen.   6. Chapter Discussion Prompt Bring this question to your next chapter meeting or officer retreat: Is there someone in your chapter who feels “present, but not fully included”—and what are you doing about it?   7. Get Involved Idea, Comment, or Nominate a future guest: https://forms.gle/mWmhGVHEUNw4vtcGA [https://forms.gle/mWmhGVHEUNw4vtcGA] Submit to the APO Soundbites segment: https://forms.gle/KgJrSnFB2z3MPC3s5 [https://forms.gle/KgJrSnFB2z3MPC3s5] Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apostaff/ [https://www.instagram.com/apostaff/] Share this episode with your chapter group chat or listen together at your next meeting.

Running Meetings That Don't Suck

1. Opening Hook + Summary Welcome to Leading for Good: The Alpha Phi Omega Story—the national podcast where we explore how leadership, friendship, and service shape who we become. In this episode, Chris Meschuk sits down with Vidushi Agarwal from the Alpha Alpha Xi Chapter at the University of the Pacific to explore one of the most common—and most overlooked—leadership challenges in APO: running effective chapter meetings. In this conversation, you’ll hear: * A real leadership moment when a meeting didn’t go as planned * How reading the room can change the entire outcome of a meeting * Simple facilitation tools to balance participation and avoid domination * Practical ways to make meetings more engaging, efficient, and meaningful If you’re an active Alpha Phi Omega member navigating chapter leadership, trying to improve meeting culture, or preparing to run your first meeting, this episode offers real-world insight and immediately actionable strategies to lead with intention.   2. What We Cover in This Episode · Why ineffective meetings are a leadership issue, not just poor planning · How to read and respond to the energy of the room · Using structure, games, and discussion formats to increase engagement · Managing dominant voices while including quieter members · Advice for first-time chapter presidents navigating imperfect meetings   3. Memorable Quotes “A bad meeting isn’t a logistics problem. It’s a leadership problem.” “As long as you guys give me the energy… I will do my power to get through this as quickly as possible.” “Your first chapter meeting is probably going to be a disaster… and that’s okay.”   4. About Our Guest Vidushi Agarwal is the President of the Alpha Alpha Xi Chapter at the University of the Pacific. She joined Alpha Phi Omega a year and a half ago and has since served as Sergeant, Vice President of Fellowship, and now Chapter President. Through her leadership, she has focused on improving engagement, strengthening chapter culture, and creating more intentional and effective chapter meetings.   5. Practical Takeaways 1. Write a one-sentence “purpose statement” for the meeting. What specifically needs to happen tonight? Say it at the start. 2. Move at least one standing update to a shared doc or email that goes out beforehand. Use that reclaimed time for something that actually requires the room. 3. End the meeting with a specific acknowledgment — one person, one thing they did, said out loud in front of the chapter. Watch what it does to the energy in the room.   6. Chapter Discussion Prompt Bring this question to your next chapter meeting or officer retreat: If every member rated your last chapter meeting from 1 to 10, what would they actually say—and what’s one change that would move that number up?   7. Get Involved Idea, Comment, or Nominate a future guest: https://forms.gle/mWmhGVHEUNw4vtcGA [https://forms.gle/mWmhGVHEUNw4vtcGA] Submit to the APO Soundbites segment: https://forms.gle/KgJrSnFB2z3MPC3s5 [https://forms.gle/KgJrSnFB2z3MPC3s5] Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apostaff/ [https://www.instagram.com/apostaff/] Share this episode with your chapter group chat or listen together at your next meeting.

Motivate Without Guilt, Pressure or Constant Reminders

1. Opening Hook + Summary Welcome to Leading for Good: The Alpha Phi Omega Story—the national podcast where we explore how leadership, friendship, and service shape who we become. In this episode, Chris Meschuk sits down with Maya Glover and Josephine White from the Alpha Eta Nu Chapter at Furman University to explore one of the most frustrating leadership challenges in APO: how to motivate people without relying on guilt or pressure. In this conversation, you’ll hear: * Why guilt and reminders stop working over time * The moment leaders realize their approach isn’t effective * How chapter culture and belonging drive real engagement * Practical leadership shifts that create lasting motivation If you’re an active Alpha Phi Omega member struggling to get people to show up, stay engaged, or care as much as you do—this episode offers real, actionable leadership insight you can use immediately.   2. What We Cover in This Episode * Why guilt and pressure fail as leadership tools * How disconnection—not laziness—drives disengagement * The role of Sunshine Chair in building chapter culture * Why individual relationships matter more than mass messaging * Three leadership shifts: ownership, purpose, and belonging   3. Memorable Quotes “Guilt might move people in the short term, but it kills long-term engagement.” “People don’t disengage because they’re lazy—they disengage because they don’t feel needed or connected.” “You can’t manufacture motivation—you create the conditions for it.”   4. About Our Guests Maya Glover and Josephine White are members of the Alpha Eta Nu Chapter at Furman University. Maya has served as Sunshine Chair, Pledgemaster, and Historian, developing a leadership style centered on personal connection and individual motivation. Josephine, a former Sunshine Chair, focuses on empathy-driven leadership and building chapter energy through engagement and inclusion. Both bring practical, real-world insight into what actually motivates members in a small chapter environment.   5. Practical Takeaways 1. Give Ownership, Not Just Tasks. 2.  Make the “Why” Visible. Every Time. 3. Build Belonging Before You Build Expectation.   6. Chapter Discussion Prompt Bring this question to your next chapter meeting or officer retreat: If motivation disappeared in your chapter tomorrow, what would still bring people together—and how can you build from that?   Discussion Guide: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LMZIjhIc5n98VZQqXQK3XFPxcBGUWDv-/view?usp=drive_link [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LMZIjhIc5n98VZQqXQK3XFPxcBGUWDv-/view?usp=drive_link]   7. Get Involved Idea, Comment, or Nominate a future guest: https://forms.gle/mWmhGVHEUNw4vtcGA [https://forms.gle/mWmhGVHEUNw4vtcGA] Submit to the APO Soundbites segment: https://forms.gle/KgJrSnFB2z3MPC3s5 [https://forms.gle/KgJrSnFB2z3MPC3s5] Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apostaff/ [https://www.instagram.com/apostaff/] Share this episode with your chapter group chat or listen together at your next meeting.

How to Lead Peers Without Burning Out

Summary In this episode, Chris Meschuk sits down with Angelina Lappin from the Mu Xi Chapter at High Point University and Antonio Johnson from the Alpha Theta Pi Online Chapter at National University to talk about one of the most real and challenging parts of leadership in Alpha Phi Omega: leading your peers without burning out.   Leading peers inside a volunteer organization is different from traditional leadership. You don’t have paychecks, grades, or formal authority motivating people. Instead, you're navigating friendship, accountability, and shared responsibility all at the same time.   Angelina shares how a difficult leadership moment—running for a position she didn’t receive—forced her to rethink how she communicated ideas and built support within her chapter. Antonio reflects on the unique challenges of leading APO’s first online chapter while balancing academics and preparing for law school.    What We Cover in This Episode • Why leading peers can feel more exhausting than leading employees • The loneliness that can come with holding leadership responsibility • How missed leadership opportunities can become powerful growth moments • Leadership myths that quietly lead to burnout • The importance of mentorship and chapter support systems • Why curiosity and relationship-building strengthen chapter culture • Three practical strategies to lead peers without burning out   About Our Guests Angelina Lappin is a senior at High Point University and a member of the Mu Xi Chapter of Alpha Phi Omega. During her time in the chapter, she has served as Pledge Secretary and Interchapter Chair multiple times and has been deeply involved in strengthening chapter relationships and engagement. Her experiences in APO helped shape her academic interests in international relations, Spanish, business administration, and Latin & Caribbean studies.   Antonio Johnson is the President of the Alpha Theta Pi Chapter at National University. As part of the team that helped establish APO’s first online chapter, Antonio is playing a key role in building its culture and leadership structure. He has also served on national committees and is preparing for law school with a passion for public service and leadership development.   Practical Take-Aways 1. Share ownership, not just tasks. 2. Set expectations out loud. 3. Redefine success.   Chapter Discussion Prompt Bring this question to your next chapter meeting or officer retreat: What responsibilities in our chapter are currently owned by one person that could be shared or distributed across the team?   Get Involved Idea, Comment, or Nominate a future guest: https://forms.gle/mWmhGVHEUNw4vtcGA [https://forms.gle/mWmhGVHEUNw4vtcGA] Submit to the APO Soundbites segment: https://forms.gle/KgJrSnFB2z3MPC3s5 [https://forms.gle/KgJrSnFB2z3MPC3s5] Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apostaff/ [https://www.instagram.com/apostaff/] Share this episode with your chapter group chat or listen together at your next meeting.   Thanks for listening to Leading for Good: The Alpha Phi Omega Story. If this episode resonated with you, share it with a brother who’s leading in your chapter right now.