Friday, November 19, 2010

Welcome!

Welcome to the SMC alumni blog! The purpose of this blog is to provide the SMC community with a glimpse into the alumni office. You will read about what we do in the Pomerleau Alumni Center, the different ways we interact with alumni, share photos and stories from the road and invite alumni to share their experiences as alumni of Saint Michael’s College. I hope you enjoy reading the posts and viewing the photos. Check back often and please share with us your stories.

My name is Allison Sherman. I graduated from St. Mike’s in 2005. I have been the Assistant Director for Alumni and Parent Relations since October 2006. In my role I work with alumni volunteers in various alumni clubs throughout the country. We plan events that provide an opportunity for alumni to connect, network and maintain a relationship with the college. Reunion is the biggest event we plan each year, we spend all year working on this event making sure everything is just right for alumni to come back to campus to reconnect with friends, faculty and staff. To help make this event special and unique to each class year we work with reunion volunteers and committees in the planning process. You will notice the photo of me on the side, overwhelmed with balloons . . . this was taken during reunion a few years ago, a typical reunion moment for the staff, moving balloons making sure campus is festive and fun! Student engagement is another one of my responsibilities. I work with student groups on campus like Founder’s Society to educate the current students on what it means to be an alum and also how alumni are there to support them as they prepare for the future. Not last, but one final major responsibility of mine is managing alumni social media. I try to reach out to alumni using Facebook and LinkedIn. These tools are great ways to stay connected with alumni and engage them in life on campus today.

A final thought, for about a year I have been researching the impact of online social networking on the Saint Michael’s alumni association for my master’s thesis. I was interested in this subject mostly due to the popularity of sites like Facebook and LinkedIn and their ability to allow users to connect with so many people. I thought alumni would prefer to connect with fellow alumni virtually. However I was mistaken . . . it seems that while alumni use online social networking to stay in touch and communicate with one anther, they are still interested in face-to-face networking opportunities. This could not have been more evident at the New York City networking social last week. There were approximately 40 alumni in attendance ranging in class years 1987 – 2010. This group was so excited to connect with fellow St. Mike’s alumni. I often think it has something to do with sharing the bond of the extremely cold Vermont winters that makes these connections deep, no one else really understands. Regardless of what it is that builds these connections they are deep, meaningful and valuable. I have not yet met an alum of Saint Michael’s who wasn’t willing to help a fellow grad. It is my mission to help facilitate these connections and build these relationships. The more alumni connect and network the better off we will all be!

Until next time, keep on networking!

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