Our Letters

ΑΡΩ

Our Mission

We the brothers of Alpha Rho Omega, in order to form a more perfect university, do herby uphold the honorable values of the Jesuit tradition and the John Carroll Community.
Being men for others we are dedicated to serving the university, striving constantly to be gentlemen, leaders, and visionaries, always working for the improvement of ourselves and our fellow man.

Our Story

Academic Year 1995-1996

Spring 1996

It began as an idea and grew into a brotherhood. What started as five friends in the hallways of Millor Hall grew to encompass individuals from all corners of the John Carroll campus. By the end of the semester, a new fraternity had been formed, a new charter had been established in the John Carroll University, a new life had begun.

By the end of our first semester of existence Alpha Rho Omega had completed most of its chartered activities. The first annual Bunny for your Honey fund raiser was a rousing success. Alpha Rho Omega had established its place with Christmas in April. And, the first ever Dunking for Diabetes Student-Faculty Basketball game raised over $200 for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. Within a single semester, an organization had gone from non-existence to complete community involvement.


Academic Year 1996-1997

Fall 1996

The new found fraternity continued to struggle to find its way into the John Carroll University. After a less than satisfactory turnout at our joint effort with RHA to bring in bands for JCU, fissures began to form. With a new pledge class in the making, these fissures began to grow and expand. What started as a few minor disagreements escalated into full blown arguments resulting in the resignation of two executive officers.

Spring 1997

The year old fraternity stumbled uncertainly into it's third semester of operation on unsure footing. However, what started on this uncertain ground became the most successful semester of Alpha Rho's short existence. With a minor setback concerning the Dunking for Diabetes, Alpha Rho rebounded into a successful Bunny for your Honey campaign, second pledge class, and first ever mixer with the girls of Theta Kappa.

Also during this semester, Alpha Rho participated in its first ever Greek Week. As an underdog from the start, Alpha Rho battled biased judges, frightened competition, and overbearing bureaucracy, to a strong Second Place finish in the overall competition, highlighted by the upsetting of favored IPT in their own basketball tournament. Following this great achievement, it was clear that this new fraternity was here to stay. The week was topped by the first ever Spring Formal Induction Dance.


Academic Year 1997-1998

Fall 1997

Building on the success of a second place finish in our first Greek week, the fall semester of 1997 proved to be a terrific one for Alpha Rho Omega. A true sense of brotherhood was developed during the Greek week competition and was carried over to the fall semester. Alpha Rho started the year with bang throwing parties 3 of the first 4 weekends back. More sororities jumped on the Alpha Rho bandwagon, resulting in mixers with Theta Kappa, Delta Delta Xi, and a Halloween bash with Zeta Tau Omega. We finally got a band to come and play outside. Keller Commons rocked to the sounds of Sax-o-Tromba, a ska band from right here in Cleveland. The success of the concert which was dubbed Oktoberjam along with Alpha Rho Omega's strong reputation of service earned the fraternity the distinction of Student Union Organization of the Month for October/November 1997. The semester was concluded by an innovative clothing drive know as Operation Warm-Up. The event was a great success and with some luck, it should become an annual event to help out the homeless in the greater Cleveland area.

Spring 1998

This semester proved to be a challenging one for the fraternity. Naturally, soon after arriving back at campus following Christmas break, Alpha Rho Omega held a successful social event. This helped us post our largest pledge class to date resulting in 17 new additional members. The pledging activities concluded with the typical scavenger hunt requiring our pledges to acquire unusual items combined with a laminating trip to Kinko's Copy Center. Early in the semester, our fraternity was targeted by the eternally respectful and courteous Cleveland Heights Police Department for having too much fun at one of our parties. On a lighter note, we were extremely competitive in the 1998 Greek Week events, winning the lip sync contest with a Top Gun, Jackson Five, Hootie & The Blowfish, and dancing bee from Blind Melon entry. Overall, we posted a solid third place finish. At the conclusion of Greek Week, we held yet another successful induction dance at Tazzano's Party Center where we spun our own tunes and provided everyone with a designated driver through a local bus line. The "Bunny for your Honey" Easter candy sales were also profitable again this year. Finally, the second annual Dunkin' For Diabetes fund-raiser for Juvenile Diabetes was also successful. The future looks bright for Alpha Rho Omega as our membership surpassed the 50 members mark.