Origins of Omicron Rho Chapter

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For several years, prior to the 1981-1982 year, on the campus of Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU), there were college men interested in pledging and bringing in a chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. to campus. Several men were able to join the fraternity while enrolled at OWU. The first OWU brother to cross the sands was Earnest Dickson who crossed the sands at Kappa chapter in 1962. There were two more men who joined the fraternity from OWU prior to the founding of Omicron Rho and they were Jackson Wright and Arthur Wall. Brother Wall and Brother Jackson pledged at the Ohio State University, Kappa Chapter during the 1963-64 school year. Both Jackson and Wall went on to be Medical doctors after graduation from OWU.

 

In contrast, the option to join Kappa Chapter was not available to men of OWU in the 1980-1981 school years. While investigating the possibility for gaining membership into the fraternity the men at Ohio Wesleyan University were told that Kappa Chapter had been suspended and were not eligible to make new members. Anthony Knight, a sophomore student from New York, would not take no for an answer and began writing the graduate chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha in Columbus during the 1980-81 school year and requested that they consider making members on the campus. However, it was not until the fall of 1981 that these men would start the process of pledging the fraternity and chartering a chapter. Unfortunately, Anthony who had done the original leg work and letter writing would be left out of the process because he had been accepted into an off campus study program in Spain and was out of the country when the process began.

 

The original interest group, Alpha Men of Tomorrow, consisted of 18 men including Brian Ward, the president of SUBA. However, many people dropped out of the process during the interest group period including Mr. Ward who was the president of the original interest group. Mr. Ward decided that the fraternal idea would disrupt the small African American community. Graduate and undergraduate chapters in the Central Ohio area took the initiative of making brothers at Ohio Wesleyan University. A total of eight Sphinxmen were taken on line Sunday January 24, 1982 in the Stuyvesant Cave at OWU. The men drove to the Ohio State University Extension Center 640 South Ohio Avenue and to the homes of many members of Alpha Rho Lambda Chapter during the seven and one half weeks that they were on line. Dressed in Black and Gold skull caps, blue jeans, with burlap feedbags underneath white t-shirts, the pledges were more than visible on the OWU campus. Sundays were dress up (shirt and tie) day and the men would meet in Stuyvesant Cave (Wila B. Player Center) for Sphinx Club meetings. Other sphinx club attire included a black Sphinxman t-shirt and a black and gold jogging suit.

 

The Omicron Rho saga continues as the year continued. The Sphinxmen were contacted by (Brian Ward), president of SUBA. Mr. Ward expressed his concerns and potential problems. SUBA (Student Union on Black Awareness) members expressed that they feared potential organizational damage caused by the political posture of the men of Alpha. Moreover, they felt that the Alpha’s would use the organization as their own forum or platform for their own political and social needs, A special call meeting was held in the Cave to discuss the issues and more than 60 African American students were in attendance. The Alpha’s were represented by Dr. Nick Nelson, John Gore, Dr. Clayton Hicks and several other Alpha Rho Lambda members. The SUBA Executive Board then voted to add several constitutional amendments to the constitution in order to limit the political power of Alpha Phi Alpha as it related to SUBA. Those amendments stated that no member of Alpha Phi Alpha could be president of SUBA and no more than two Alpha’s could be on the executive board at one time. Although the future men of Alpha were angry about the new amendments there was nothing they could do about it. The new amendment that Mr. Ward presented only withheld for one academic year. Brothers of Omicron Rho has served on the executive board of SUBA,  its mission to help develop the connection of African American students as well as aid the students in their academia.

 

Moreover it was more important for them to finish their process. Once brothers felt that the Sphinxmen had successfully completed the trials and tribulations, and met the standards necessary to be an Alpha man, and indeed had found the light, these men crossed the burning sands into Alpha Phi Alpha. But only seven men were initiated on that day March 7, 1982 in the OSU Extension Center, 640 South Ohio Avenue for the ace #1 of the line Charles Graham had dropped the line.

 

The seven men initiated on Sunday March 7th, 1982 were Darryl Fletcher, Roger Craig Allen, Harold Edward Pinkston, Noel Garth Goodrich, Darryl Alan Peal, Anthony Ross Gray and Daniel Matthew Sturkey. These seven men were later granted a charter in April 1982 becoming the Omicron Rho Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. key #723. The chartering ceremony was held at the Gathering Inn (Private dining room) at 259 South Sandusky Street in Delaware Ohio.

 

Since 1982, Omicron Rho has developed a legacy of leadership. Brother Darryl Peal was the first Brother to hold a fraternal office outside the chapter. He was elected to the position of State Secretary for Ohio, at the 1983 State Convention at the University of Cincinnati. He was reelected at the next state convention at Kent State University. Brother Franklin Morris was elected to the position of Vice President for Ohio at the state convention in the fall 1987, and sat in the dais in that office at Central State University.  In 1993 Omicron Rho was nominated by District Director and Ohio Wesleyan alum, (attorney) Retanio Rucker, for the Regional Grade Point Average Award at the Midwestern Regional Convention in Chicago, Illinois. The chapter won and this became the first to receive the Regional award for highest GPA (3.10).

 

  First Steps in City-Wide Expansion

 

It was also in 1993 the Omicron Rho Chapter expanded beyond the campus of Ohio Wesleyan and began to expand their community service and advocacy at another college institution in the Central Ohio area. Brother Damon Knight a student at Otterbein College (now Otterbein University) was the first brother who did not attend Ohio Wesleyan University, to be initiated into Omicron Rho. Brother Knight and Brother Major Foley crossed in the fall of 1993. Their initiation saved the chapter which had been closed for 18 months by the national organization. The decline in numbers of African American men at Ohio Wesleyan, alumni pressure and the increased interest of men from other college institutions in the city of Columbus caused Omicron Rho to change its status to a city-wide chapter.

 

Brother Michael Bivens was a student at Capital University and was the first man from Capital to contact the chapter. Michael Bivens was so persistent about gaining membership, a smoker was planned for the first time on the campus of Capital University.  On April 9th, 1995, Bivens and Edward Quincy Williams were the first two members from Capital University to be initiated. The expansion of Omicron Rho did not stop there. On March 2nd, 1996 Omicron Rho expanded to include the campus of DeVry Institute (Now DeVry University) when Brother Eric Pannell was initiated. On March 3rd, 2001 the chapter expanded to Ohio Dominican University with the initiation of Brother Roberto Allen. March 9th, 2002 the chapter now serviced the campus of Franklin University, making Brother Thomas Few the first brother from Franklin University.

 

With high anticipation, the academic school year of April 2004 brought forth four distinguished gentleman. This was the first time in our fraternities’ history, which was built on the expansion with men, that we extended the boundaries to welcome Columbus College of Art and Design (CCAD). Marshall Shorts was the first Brother to cross the Sands at this location. The commitment to excellence and service, Bro. Marshall Shorts and Bro. Jarrod Weeks would eventually showcase the talents and accomplishments of the Chapter and win Chapter of the Year during the 2004-2005 school year. Since then the Omicron Rho chapter has proudly served seven college campuses in the Central Ohio area!

 

Onward and Upward

 

In 1994 Brother Jay Williams became the chapter’s first life member and he also served as Assistant Area Director. He was appointed by then Area Director, Brother Peal. In 1995 Brother Thomas Winston became the Area Director in Chicago. In 1996 Brother Foley was appointed Assistant Area Director by Brother Peal.

The year 1997 was a great one for Omicron Rho, Brother Michael Merritt was elected to the post of District Secretary at the District Convention in Akron, Ohio. At the same convention Brother Peal was elected as the District of Ohio Alumni Brother of the Year and through the hard work of chapter members and chapter advisor, Robert “Bo” Chilton, Omicron Rho was selected as the Ohio District and Regional Chapter of the Year.

 

On March 22nd, 2003 at the 71st Midwestern Regional Convention, at the Palmer House  Hotel in Chicago, Brother Peal was elected Midwestern Regional Vice President. This is another testament to the strength and leadership of the chapters initiates. During the last three decades Omicron Rho has worked hard to maintain a quality chapter.

 

As everything came full circle, on November 5th 2005 Bro. Jarrod M. Weeks would serve as the Dean of membership intake. During this season Brother Weeks would not only break the stereotype of racial boundaries by initiating the Chapters and Columbus Ohio's first undergraduate caucasian Brother, Bro. Richard Dwyer; but he would also be the first member in Omicron Rho history to simultaneously dean two lines (One inside the Chapter, Prodigal Sons, and one outside the chapter, 7 Sons of Persecution, from The Ohio State Universities Kappa Chapter)

 

In 2006 Brother Emmanuel T. Brown was elected Assistant Regional Vice President, serving with Brother Peal. This was the first time that the Regional Vice President and Assistant Regional Vice President both, were serving the same year from the same chapter.  During his tenure in the active chapter Brother Emmanuel Brown won the Oratorical contest at the Regional Convention two years in a row. In 2007 Brother Richard Dwyer appeared on  the Army Times newspaper on the front page and in the following year he was featured in the Sphinx Magazine’s as one of the “Alpha Brothers on the Move.” In 2009 Brother Peal ran for General President of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. his campaign platform was “The Alpha Inheritance: Speaks on being heirs to the throne of Alpha, therefore, we must do everything in our power to guard it, keep it safe, and build upon its foundation.” Despite of losing the race for General President, Brother Peal made the Omicron Rho chapter known nation and worldwide. 

 

In fall of 2011 Brother Terrell Knight was elected as the Assistant District Director, that same year Brother Richard Cooper served as the Assistant Area Director. Immediately succeeding Brother Cooper in 2013 was Brother Camren Harris. In more recent years  Brothers of Omicron Rho has won the Brother of the Year award back to back years. Brother Cameron Change won at the District Convention in Columbus, Ohio in the fall of 2013 and Brother Camren Harris won at the District Convention in Toledo, Ohio in the fall of 2014. Also during the 2014 District Convention Brother Maurice Sorrell McGee proved his elegancy with words and won the Oratorical competition. Following Brother Harris, Brother McGee served as the assistant area director, and also was appointed as the Assistant Director of Communications for the District of Ohio by District Director Elder Larry McCriminger. During the 2015 District Convention the chapter won the Scholars Bowl competition and also Brother returned to win for the third time in a row the Brother of the Year Award. During the 2016 Midwestern Region Convention Brother McGee became the first in chapter history to win the Brother of the Year award in Des Moines, Iowa and the chapter was able to win the Scholars Bowl competition of behalf of the Ohio as well. During the 2016 District convention Brother Jeron Gaskins had the opportunity to prove his aptitude in spoken word by winning the Oratorical competition. 

 

Through the years the chapter has won many academic awards for campus GPA. That speaks volumes to the type of Brothers that are a part of the chapter.  All seven colleges that are included in the Omicron Rho chapter, are private colleges that demands academic excellence from their students due to their rigorous curriculums. Today the chapter continues to hold up the light. The Brothers are student Government officers, resident assistants, assistant area directors, campus committee and student finance chairs, Black Student Union presidents and other exec board positions. Although others try hard, Omicron Rho runs the yard!