[15170] in APO-L
Service Hour requirements
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Poet)
Tue Oct 29 21:15:43 1996
Date: Tue, 29 Oct 1996 21:14:13 -0500
Reply-To: Poet <rdq@ACSU.BUFFALO.EDU>
From: Poet <rdq@ACSU.BUFFALO.EDU>
To: Multiple recipients of list APO-L <APO-L@VM.CC.PURDUE.EDU>
I come from a chapter with a long-standing tradition of service hour
requirements. It has served us well. We have a 30 hour requirement per
semester.
HOWEVER, I do not feel it is the National Administration's place to dictate
service hour requirements of any kind. While I believe service hour
requirements, in chapters, are a good idea if used as a means to keep
the fraternity a healthy one, dictating a national standard would be
a poor choice.
Maybe its my natural dislike of big government, but I sincerely doubt a
twenty hour requirement would have the intended effect. It may become
just a hurdle, as opposed to a goal. Goals are to be achieved and surpassed,
hurdles just leaped over with relief. In addition, how would the national
service committee enforce it? What prevents chapters from sending bogus
reports? Can we investigate every chapter to see if they keep their noses
clean? Is this really the direction we want to go in?
I do not believe so. If there is to be a requirement, it must be at the chapter
level where it is enforceable, reasonable, and adjusted to the realities of
campus life there. Some chapters have no requirement, but do tons of
service. Others have a service requirement they struggle to achieve. It
all depends on view.
In my opinion, a service requirement is a good way to keep tabs on who
is really active, and it serves a goal or benchmark.
However, a service requirement which is just a requirement, like a national
one would be, really defeats its own purpose.
Just my two cents,
Ricahrd D. Quodomine
