Pillar 1: Developing Professional Competency

AFA develops a portfolio of programs and experiences designed to enhance and maximize the skills, talents, and overall effectiveness of the fraternity/sorority professional.

Stretch Goal 1: AFA will develop a robust professional development strategy that meets the needs of fraternity/sorority professionals, from graduate student/early-career professional to senior level administrator. AFA will focus on expanding professional development to include the knowledge and professional skills needed to successfully elevate professional practice. AFA will further invest in core competency enhancement and integration designed to better assist professionals in crafting more intentional professional development planning. AFA will cement higher education partnerships that help to expand our professional development reach to new audiences. 

Stretch Goal 2: AFA will partner with external associations and organizations to provide shared professional development programming that collectively influences the fraternity/sorority experience. AFA will identify and prioritize focused/boutique program opportunities created in partnership with external organizations that serve to build knowledge and codify best/promising practice, and will expand its MOUs with partner organizations/associations to provide partner content that meets the educational needs of constituents within and outside of AFA.

Stretch Goal 3: AFA will develop ‘Communities of Practice’ designed to bring together professionals, organizations, and campuses around areas of practice impacting the fraternity/sorority experience. AFA will engage its members, host institutions, headquarters, and vendors in building communities for fraternity/sorority professionals designed to share, discuss, and test ideas around specific areas of fraternity/sorority practice. Additionally, AFA will identify meaningful ways for those communities to shape best practice across the profession. 

Stretch Goal 4: AFA will strengthen its information technology in a way that will provide a more focused, personalized member and donor platform experience. AFA will invest in platform upgrades to its member-facing information technology that better showcase a more integrated AFA member and donor experience and facilitate easier access to AFA programs and services.

Stretch Goal 5: AFA will invest in certification and credentialing opportunities (aligned with our Core Competencies) across the fraternity/sorority profession, including for those identifying as campus-based, headquarters staff, and volunteers. AFA will focus on providing certificate-style experiences that allow for members to showcase specific knowledge and skills that can elevate their work and provide upward mobility. 

Stretch Goal 6: AFA will integrate mentorship/sponsorship mechanisms within appropriate AFA professional development programs in order to meet our community’s needs for membership/sponsorship/access. AFA will build out mentor and sponsor integrations to our flagship programs (programs like Graduate Training Track, First 90 Days, Mid-Career Institute) that connect participants to other talent designed to strengthen connection to AFA and to provide further opportunity for knowledge application. 

Forward to 50: Elevating AFA into its Next 50 Years | 2022 – 2026 Strategic Plan