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[Identification of item], Alpha Phi Omega, Lambda Nu Chapter Records, University Archives, Duke University.
The Alpha Phi Omega, Lambda Nu Chapter Records was received by the University Archives as several transfers in 2004.
Processed by Valerie Gillispie
Completed October 7, 2004
Encoded by Valerie Gillispie, October 12, 2004
This finding aid is NCEAD compliant.
The following brief history appears on the Lambda Nu website: http://www.duke.edu/apo/
Lambda Nu Chapter of Alpha Phi Omega was founded at Duke University in 1955 by Thomas R. Neese. Encouraged by area Boy Scout representative Bill Roth, Neese recruited Robert M. Graper and Joseph Griffin, fellow brothers of the Phi Kappa Sigma fraternity. Together, they organized the first pledge class with assistance from Rho Chapter of UNC-Chapel Hill. Sixteen men comprised this initial group, which first met in February of 1955. Potential service projects were discussed at this meeting, and the future Brothers choose a project blazing a nature trail at the Durham Children's Museum (now the Museum of Life and Science). This first project, which preceded the chartering of Lambda Nu, has been a regular project of the Chapter ever since.
The Chapter grew in prestige during the 1960s, despite a membership which hovered around twenty men during most of this period, and a need to establish itself among larger service organizations at Duke. APO appeared successful, expanding its service program to include a diverse range of projects.
In 1974, Lambda Nu began accepting women, a full two years before the National fraternity went co-ed. The Chapter was able to do this by submitting membership lists to the National office that included only first initials and last names. Soon afterwards, however, the Chapter began to drift apart, with its last active member deactivating around 1978.
In the Spring of 1979, Duke sophomore Bob McMahan learned about APO from friends who were Brothers at the Iota Lambda Chapter at North Carolina State. McMahan spent the fall 1979 semester researching the history of Lambda Nu and recruiting interested people. By April of 1980, Lambda Nu was reborn, initiating nineteen pledges.
As Duke grew during the 1980s, so did Lambda Nu. Alpha Phi Omega celebrated the opening of the Bryan Center in 1982 helping the Duke University Union raise money to buy the baby grand piano that now sits in the Center's Schaefer Mall. By the end of the 1980s, the Chapter was annually performing thousands of hours of service for the Durham community, working for groups like the Eno River State Park, Lenox Baker Children's Hospital, Genesis Home, Duke Rescue Mission, and many local hospitals, schools and shelters. In addition, the chapter's fundraising efforts grew to a donation approaching ten thousand dollars each year to a local charity.
The Alpha Phi Omega, Lambda Nu Chapter Records include minutes, reports, correspondence, administrative information, slides, photographs, audio tapes, scrapbooks, and other materials documenting the history of this service fraternity. The first series, Administrative, contains information about the membership, volunteer work, social activities, and alumni of Lambda Nu. The second series, Slides, contains slides of Lambda Nu activities from 1980 to 1997. The next series, Audio Recordings, has one audio cassette of the 1998 Senior Banquet. The fourth series, Composite Photographs, contains photographs of all Lambda Nu Members during most school years between 1986 and 2002. The Scrapbooks series contains photographs, documents, handwritten notes, and other materials assembled by Lambda Nu members. The final series, Oversize Materials, houses oversize scrapbooks.
These and related materials may be accessed under the following subject headings in the Duke University Libraries online catalog.
The Administrative series contains materials used by chapter leaders in their administration of Lambda Nu, including minutes, reports, correspondence, slides, and information on volunteer projects, membership, social activities, alumni, and the history of the chapter. Much of the material was originally housed in binders, and the original arrangement of papers has been retained. Folders are arranged chronologically.
The slides document Lambda Nu volunteer and social activities. See folders 30, 31, and 38 for more slides.
The Audio Recordings series contains one standard audio cassette tape.
The Composite Photographs series contains oversize photographs of Lambda Nu members during a school year. The photographs include the names of the members as well as their positions in the group. They are arranged in chronological order.
The Scrapbooks series contains scrapbooks made by Lambda Nu members to document their volunteer and social activities. They contain photographs, drawings, handwritten notes, typed documents, and other materials. Some scrapbooks have been interleaved with acid-free paper to protect their pages. The books are arranged in chronological order.
The Oversize Materials series contains oversize scrapbooks. The complete list of scrapbooks can be found in the previous series.