A few short years ago, as Facebook made the leap from dorm room to, well, every room, some alumni leaders wondered if Facebook's growing popularity would mean the end of reunion. Time has passed, and most alumni professionals have come to know and love Facebook--truly or out of necessity. On the whole, Facebook has proven itself friend not foe,…

Many universities, colleges, and independent schools face the reality of geographically expanding alumni bases, likely combined with constant or decreasing budgets for alumni activities. Well-intentioned colleagues understand the potential power of a geographically diverse alumni network but do not always grasp the time and complexity associated…

A discussion of financial audits for alumni associations encourages their use as a means of checking the organization's financial systems, and gives suggestions for finding an auditor, keeping costs down, and preparing for the audit. (MSE)

Discusses the need for alumni directors to have a good working relationship with their college or university chief executive officer (CEO). Alumni directors need to increase their visibility, meet with the CEO on a regular basis, show results, plan around the CEO's schedule, and mediate conflicts between alumni and the CEO. (MDM)

Provides advice to small alumni offices on how to manage alumni relations and the annual fund campaign, noting that small offices need to develop a flexible attitude, consider the benefits of performing both tasks, work with people they can count on, manage their time carefully, and balance both activities. (MDM)

A number of factors keep college alumni staff and development officers from forging cooperative relationships, and campus and graduates suffer as a result. These factors include competition for resources and professional opportunities and stereotypes of administrator roles and characteristics. Successful partnerships require shared values and…

Three alumni travel directors offer advice on taking control when tour crises arise. The cases cited involved irresponsible tour agents, problem travelers, and on-location disasters. Both precautions and creative solutions are emphasized. (MSE)

Alumni leaders should be included in a school or college capital campaign drive. The alumni office can help find prospects, provide events and programs for fund raising, promote the campaign, involve alumni staff members. Alumni themselves can assist in campaign planning and inspire others to give by donating themselves. (MSE)

Tips are offered to college alumni directors and campus computer experts for communicating with each other regarding the institution's World Wide Web page. They concern making needs and capabilities clear and understanding the role of the other professional. (MSE)

Alumni administrators in private schools can participate in choosing and acclimating a new school head by pushing for an alumni constituency committee to meet candidates; asking candidates directly about alumni work; offering the new administrator early and wide exposure to alumni; and educating and promoting the new head. (MSE)

Alumni directors can bring creative ideas to traditional tasks by taking a new look at the problem, being aware of personal creative peaks, seeking perspectives outside the office staff, acknowledging that creativity is an attitude, putting new ideas to work, and having fun. (MSE)

The alumni association president can participate effectively in college fund-raising campaigns by developing a high-quality board, seeking appointments to campus committees, learning about fund raising, cultivating relationships, being a resource before and after the campaign, offering to participate, evaluating programs regularly, and reaping…

This article offers suggestions to alumni affairs offices who are dealing with increasing numbers of outspoken or angry alumni. Advice includes responding promptly, listening carefully, getting the facts ahead of time, keeping alumni informed, and monitoring the hot spots. Examples of how various colleges and universities handle alumni complaints…

This article provides advice from editors of alumni magazines on how to improve such periodicals: (1) get better writers; (2) improve content; (3) improve design quality; (4) multiply good ideas; (5) make the most of photographs; (6) achieve savings in design; (7) get a bigger budget; and (8) manage magazine staff. (MDM)

Five hypothetical ethical dilemmas involving alumni offices are outlined, and the responses of a number of alumni directors and ethics experts are provided. The scenarios involve administrator travel, valued faculty violating institutional policy on multiple employment, alumni staff members' loyalty to alumni board versus the institution, hiring…