Dear Friends . . .

by Allison Dykes
Vice President for Alumni Relations


I recently had the good fortune to attend an exciting meeting of alumni, administrators, and students called “Enhancing the Student-to-Alumni Experience,” which took place the morning of Friday, March 2.

If you are engaged with Emory, your alma mater, you most likely had a positive experience on campus. That’s what the Emory Alumni Association (EAA) wants for all of our alumni. Unfortunately, not all of our alumni are engaged. If students have a negative experience, it could adversely affect how they view Emory as alumni.

We know not every alumnus is going to love us—but we want as many of you engaged as possible. So that’s why “Enhancing the Student-to-Alumni Experience” was convened. We wanted to find out what the touch points are in the student-to-alumni experience. What affects them? How can we improve them? What can we learn?

The conversation has just begun, but it is already off to a great start. Many Emory Alumni Board (EAB) members played integral roles in the group discussions that took place, and intriguing questions emerged. Should alumni be involved in FAME (Freshmen Advising and Mentoring) groups? Is there a role for alumni in orientation activities? Are students and alumni aware of the career services available at Emory? Those are just a few of the questions we will work to answer during the next several months.

March 2 was a very busy day at the Miller-Ward Alumni House. “Enhancing the Student-to-Alumni Experience” took place in tandem with a triannual meeting of the Emory Alumni Board. Then, that night, the EAA presented Judge Bill Norton 42OX 48C 50L with the J. Pollard Turman Alumni Service Award. Judge Norton has not only been a significant contributor to alumni traditions at Emory—he helped create some of them. He was the driving force behind the creation of boards of counselors at both Oxford and the law school, and he has been an engaged alumnus for more than fifty years. Judge Norton defines what alumni service is supposed to be, and the EAA is proud to honor him and his work.

That is some of what has been happening on campus with the EAA. Now let’s take a look at what’s coming up—such as Emory Commencement Weekend, May 10–14. Please join us in welcoming the Class of 2007 into the EAA.

And if you graduated in 1957 or earlier, you already should have received your invitation to join Corpus Cordis Aureum. Now in its fourth year, Corpus Cordis Aureum has become one of Emory’s most valued traditions. The vision of our golden-robed graduates—all of whom graduated from Emory at least fifty years ago—entering the Quadrangle during Commencement is truly a remarkable sight to behold.

The view is even better if you are one of the marchers. So, if you graduated from Emory in 1957 or earlier, I hope you can come home to campus for Emory Commencement Weekend.

Even though it’s always exciting to have as many alumni as possible on campus during Emory Commencement Weekend, there doesn’t have to be a special occasion to visit. We have special occasions all the time—from concerts in the Schwartz Center to professional networking events in the Miller-Ward Alumni House, and much more. I hope to see you at one (or more) of them.

As always, I welcome your comments about the EAA and the work we’re doing, as well as about Emory University in general. Do you have a question or comment about the student-to-alumni experience? If so, I would love to hear it. You can reach me at allison.dykes@emory.edu. Have a wonderful spring!

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