Dartmouth's class newsletter program has proved to be a simple but effective way to foster loyalty, affection, and support among their alumni. The newsletters also promote continuing education programs, act as informal career and placement networks, and find lost alumni. (MLW)

Alumni administrators are in a unique position to link alumni to products, services, and opportunities they wouldn't otherwise know about. On most campuses, valuable educational and cultural opportunities exist. Ways an alumni administrator can act as a broker between the institution and its alumni are described. (MLW) PUBTYPE-141

When nontraditional students become alumni, building loyalty takes creativity. For an urban campus and its alumni, it is important to clearly identify-and then offer programs to-specific constituencies within the alumni. The experiences of New York University are described. (MLW)

Faculty need to be organized to tap the hidden resource that can sustain a program--the alumni. Department heads and faculty know an institution better than most alumni directors. The benefits of this kind of program include attracting candidates into the program, career planning for graduates, and fund raising. (MLW)

In the wake of increased minority awareness, many institutions have organized special alumni associations for minorities. The issues of whether to have more than one alumni association is discussed. Alumni administrators from across the country were asked for their views on the benefits and drawbacks of minority alumni associations. (MLW)

Improving productivity in alumni programs involves finding the right combination of budget, staff, and program that will energize the alumni. Whitman College has found that spending money, time, and energy to motivate and train volunteers, educate staff, and involve students yields rich dividends. (MLW)

The formation of an alumni/student association at Empire State College, which offers an alternative form of education to New York state citizens, is described. The association offers college-wide opportunities to use alumni and students as resources. Association activities and the benefits from the program are examined. (MLW)

An informal survey revealed a variety of young alumni activities, including separate young alumni associations, input to campus activities and college planning, social events, special interest groups, and professional networks. (MSE)

Some things to consider before planning separate alumni activities or associations for young alumni include common assumptions about young adults' interests, spending patterns, willingness to do fund-raising, and interest in meeting older graduates. (MSE)

A well-organized small shop is seen as necessary for an alumni association. Some tips include: create one central file, keep up with filing, be a selective saver, keep the original artwork, label pictures, put records on microfiche, and use cards instead of form letters. (MLW)

College closings have generated a new alumni association--the independent association, operating despite closure of the parent college. Three independent alumni associations are discussed, and the development of tools to serve the needs of independent associations, especially fund raising and financing, are advocated. (MLW)

The history and activities of Cornell University's Cornell Women Graduates Association are described. The organization had as its primary purposes to keep a woman on the board of trustees and to protect the interests of women students in housing, job opportunities, and campus activities and publications. (MSE)

Strategies used at Oberlin College to justify a budgetary increase for alumni programs are outlined, along with suggestions for budgetary planning. Alumni program coordination with other important programs--such as recruitment, career exploration, and attracting experts to campus--is suggested. (MSE)

Western Michigan University' president discusses the role of the alumni association in the life of an institution and its relationship with the development office. It is suggested the association's job is to promote anything that builds and maintains alumni loyalty to an alma mater portrayed as an ever-evolving academic institution. (MSE)

Alumni travel programs provide an ideal opportunity for both learning and nurturing a climate of support for a college. Yale University's (Connecticut) alumni association has found the inclusion of faculty on its educational tours to be highly successful, sometimes constructing entire trips around the faculty member's educational objective. (MSE)