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Alpha Gamma Omega
ΑΓΩ
Founded	February 25, 1927 (1927-02-25) (98 years ago) University of California, Los Angeles
Type	Social
Emphasis	Christian
Scope	National
Motto	"Fraternity for Eternity."
Colors	Blue   Gold
Flower	Easter Lily
Chapters	16, 10 Active
Verse	"Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman who needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." 2 Timothy 2:15
Headquarters	28000 Meadow Drive Suite 104 Evergreen, CO USA
Website	http://www.ago.org

Alpha Gamma Omega (ΑΓΩ) (or "AGO") is a national, Christ-Centered fraternity. It was founded in 1927 at UCLA, making it the oldest national Christian fraternities in the United States. There were 12 original charter members, with E. Harlan Fischer appointed as the first president. There are currently nine active chapters. AGO's Christian sorority counterpart is Alpha Delta Chi and is considered the fraternity's "sister sorority."

The Preamble to the Constitution

The preamble to the fraternity's constitution is as follows:

Believing in the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal savior, we, as Christian young men of Alpha Gamma Omega Fraternity, purpose that it shall be the aim of this fraternity:

• To win others to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ,
• To promote Christian Fellowship,
• To present Christian ideals in word and deed,
• To search reverently for the Truth,
• To uphold the traditions and ideals of the university,
• And to deepen the spiritual lives of the members.

Significance of the Letters

Alpha Omega, the first name chosen by the Fraternity, was taken from the Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ where our Lord says, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending..." This name was chosen to show that we are a group which recognizes the sovereign majesty of God and His dominion and Lordship over all things.
However, it was later found that there was an organization in existence which had the same name. Therefore, the letter "Gamma" was chosen to be added since it is the third letter of the Greek alphabet, thus corresponding with the "C" in the Latin alphabet -- "C" being the initial of Christ. It was inserted between the Alpha and Omega to signify the oneness of Christ with God, and to remind us that He is to be kept at the center of our lives and our Fraternity.

Fraternity-Wide Events

• Founders' Day - Celebrated on the last Saturday of February, the active and alumni members celebrate the founding of the fraternity. In 2011 the event was changed to a family picnic to encourage more participation from alumni.
• All-AGO Pismo Beach Flag Football Tournament. Every October, the Kappa chapter of AGO hosts the various chapters as they compete on the Pismo-Oceano Dunes against one another in 7 on 7 flag football for bragging rights and the trophy, followed by an evening of dinner with worship and a devotional in San Luis Obispo.
• Prayer at Noon
• Monday Night Meetings
• Annual alumni camping trip to Yosemite
• Mission trip to serve the people of the San Carlos Apache reservation in AZ

Membership Requirements

Pledges may become active members of an AGO chapter at the invitation of the current active members. To become eligible for activation, pledges must complete a pledge program, slightly unique to each chapter but governed by the National Executive Committee.

During the pledge semester, pledges take part in activities designed to promote brotherhood among themselves. For example, in the Beta chapter at UC Berkeley, pledges usually gather for dinner with the active body on Mondays and later have a session of Bible study. A long held tradition in the Beta chapter is the "Pledge Sneak" event, in which instead of attending the Monday night dinner, the pledges sneak the president of the chapter away for the Monday. The active body try to find the president by following clues laid out by the pledges, which lead to a specific restaurant and time where the president is being held by the pledges. Other chapters have similar traditions, but with some distinctive variations.

List of Chapters

• Alpha - UCLA
• Beta - UC Berkeley
• Gamma - California State University, Long Beach (inactive)
• Delta - California State University, Los Angeles (inactive)
• Epsilon - San Diego State University
• Zeta - University of California, Santa Barbara
• Eta - California State University, Fresno
• Theta - Arizona State University (inactive)
• Iota - UC Davis
• Kappa - Cal Poly San Luis Obispo(not affiliated w/university)
• Lambda - UC Irvine (inactive)
• Mu - Illinois State University (inactive)
• Nu - Baylor University (inactive)
• Xi - University of Colorado at Boulder
• Omicron - University of North Carolina at Charlotte (inactive)
• Pi - University of Southern California
• Rho - Colorado State University

Famous Members of Alpha Gamma Omega

• Honorary Member - Evangelist Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ: UCLA Chapter
• Percy Crawford, Founder of Kings College: UCLA Chapter
• Sports newscaster, John Howard, CBS News: SDSU Chapter
• President of the independent record label The Militia Group, Rory Felton: USC Chapter
• Journalist / Documentarian Bobby Bailey of "Invisible Children": USC Chapter
• Actor Beau Wirick of "Raising Dad" and "The Middle": USC Chapter

External links

• Alpha Gamma Omega national website

v t e Christian fraternities and Christian sororities
National, social Greek letter organizations for Christian men and women
Fraternities	Twenty or more chapters Beta Upsilon Chi, 1985 Ten or more chapters Beta Sigma Psi, 1925 Alpha Gamma Omega, 1927 Alpha Nu Omega, 1988 Gamma Phi Delta, 1988 Less than ten chapters Sigma Theta Epsilon, 1949 Chi Alpha Omega, 1987 Mu Omicron Gamma, 2001
Sororities	Twenty or more chapters Sigma Phi Lambda 1988 Sigma Alpha Omega, 1998 Ten or more chapters Alpha Delta Chi 1925 Phi Beta Chi 1978 Alpha Nu Omega 1988 Alpha Lambda Omega 1990 Delta Psi Epsilon 1999 Less than ten chapters Delta Phi Psi 2008

• Student societies in the United States
• Baylor University
• University of California, Los Angeles
• Christian fraternities and sororities in the United States