British exchange student returns to APSU for Kappa Alpha Order’s 15th anniversary
By: Ellie Forrest November 13, 2026
Joseph Cashin, a British foreign exchange student who joined Kappa Alpha Order during a year abroad at APSU. | Photo by Sean McCully
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. — Austin Peay State University’s Zeta Tau Chapter of the Kappa Alpha Order (KA) fraternity is approaching 15 years on campus, and British foreign exchange student Joe Cashin traveled back to Clarksville to celebrate the milestone with his fraternity brothers.
Cashin is originally from Sheffield, England, and during his time at Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU), he chose to add a “sandwich” year abroad to his international business management degree. MMU placed him at Austin Peay, where he decided to dive headfirst into American college culture by joining a fraternity.
“I feel like if you're going to do something, you want to get fully immersed into whatever it is,” Cashin said. “I thought if I'm coming here, I may as well try and get involved with what the Americans are doing, and I think Greek life is quite a big part of college life if you're a social person. So, I went into the deep end straight away, and it was probably the best thing I did because they were almost like my friends and family away from home.”
Professional development and philanthropy were also major parts of Cashin’s KA experience and have served him well in his current role with the National Residential Landlords Association. Although he has always loved to travel, Cashin said living so far away from home forced him to become more confident and deeply affected his character and identity.
“I've always been a very social person, but to have that kind of added confidence to come to a different country, make so many friends and have so many actual long-lasting connections,” he said. “It just made me a more well-rounded person to do what I did at such a great distance.”
Along with professional advantages, Cashin's KA membership led to deep connections that far outlasted his time at the university.
“I feel like Greek life not only gives you a sense of community in your own fraternity, but that kind of togetherness comes onto the campus as well,” he said. “So, it's not just a sense of community in the fraternity; I think that spreads out into the whole of APSU.”
Current Zeta Tau Chapter President Mason Platzke invited Cashin back for the 15th-anniversary celebration, which he said is a perfect opportunity to honor the lifelong connections that Greek life provides.
“For me, 15 years of Zeta Tau is all about appreciation,” Platzke said. “It is the chance to thank each and every brother who has played a part in making our chapter the chapter it is today. Countless brothers have passed through Austin Peay who have made a significant impact on our organization. And just think: alumni like Joe traveled from as far away as Manchester, England, to celebrate with us.”
Platzke is excited about the chapter’s future and hopes to increase the fraternity’s presence and impact on campus. Zeta Tau welcomed the largest pledge class in its history this fall, with 20 new members, and last spring, the chapter accumulated 300 service hours and nearly $3,800 through its philanthropic efforts. The chapter’s current goal is to reach even more successful milestones for its 20th and 25th anniversaries.
“To me, KA is more than just being a member of the Order,” Platzke said. “It's about developing men who lead by example, serve others and make a lasting impact on Austin Peay and the surrounding community.”
Alongside his KA community, the APSU Office of Study Abroad and International Exchange also had a significant impact on Cashin’s time at the university. His advisors helped him adjust to many of the challenges he faced in student life and academics.
“There's a really big support network for international students at APSU,” Cashin said. “I never felt like I was going without or that I didn't have any support.”
Cashin said his APSU experience gave him one-of-a-kind opportunities, friendships and communities that made him an overall better person, and the memories and experiences he gained will stick with him for the rest of his life.
“I feel like the biggest lesson that I learned was that it’s very important to have a group of people, a base that you can lean on whenever,” he said. “It's not necessarily just when you're going through hardships, but also when you want to go and just chat to someone and have a laugh. It's always nice to have that base, that core group of people. I feel like that takes a lot of stress away from life, and while I was out here, after I joined the fraternity, it felt like home.”