Your First Event
What do you envision as the first social event to hold? When would that be? What do you want in place before the event?
Cesar G ,
I like your thinking on this. Inviting employers certainly adds an additional benefit for your graduates to attend. Hosting the event at your campus gives you an opportunity to show off your upgraded campus and allows your alumni to return to the place where there education took place. They enjoy coming back!
June Gudeman
I would like for the first event to be a mix of graduates and employers that we work with. This will give the graduates an opportunity to mingle with employers and past externship site supervisors. The event would be on campus because we have been in the community for about 11 years now and recently upgraded our campus. I would like for older graduates and employers to see the new campus look. I would like to have RSVP's and logistics in place. This will help the event run smooth and prepare us for any hiccups.
Shannon,
Great ideas! I've found that our graduates LOVE coming back and connecting with their former instructors and they are very willing to speak to students or alumni both about their experience as a student and as a professional. The students listen carefully to our graduates when they give advice.
June Gudeman
After reading through some of the comments I do like the idea of a Alumni Mixer as a social event to hold as a first social event. Additionally, I may consider having a campus recognition event that will allow our alumni to return to the campus and discuss to student what they are doing and give them an opportunity to motivate the current students in class. I feel by providing an opportunity to Alumni to speak to our students it would reward them for their hard work, give them a possibility to recruit potential graduates if they themselves have moved into hiring positions within the organization, and give them a chance to possibly speak with a proud instructor or two.
Gina,
Again, it would be interesting to 'think' like a graduate. Why would I want to come back? What would draw me? People are so busy with full schedules. It is imperative that you offer something they are looking for. Possibly, it would be good to survey some of your graduates or even involve them in the planning?
June Gudeman
I think first a small gathering at the school itself for tours/improvement ideas and refresher of where the alumni once studied!
Milagros,
I like the idea of bringing your students back to your campus. Alumni appreciate opportunities to come back and it give you an opportunity to showcase new/updated facilities or programs. It's important to determine what exactly will be a DRAW to your graduates. It may be worth talking with or surveying some alumni to see what that is. Sometimes what we think will be a draw, isn't really.
June Gudeman
I would like the first event to be held at the school, similar to an open house for prospective students. It would be a weekend event so working alumni hopefully would be able to attend. We would have at least three people from career services available for the alumni, as well as current students to guide them to group discussions held in the classrooms. This event would be held after at least three Board Advisory meetings to develop ideas, and also e-blast the alumni for ideas on what they would like to discuss at the event.
Shawn,
This sounds like a simple event and yet one that would draw your graduates. I like the idea and believe it's important to start small and then build.
June Gudeman
A possible first social event for our alumni association could be a "lunch and learn", wherein the alum would be invited to a lunch where a guest speaker from the field would give a short presentation. This would be attractive to alumni because it could count toward the CEU credits they must all achieve for their license in the field, and they could learn from the professional something that could immediately be incorporated into their own business.
Debra,
Perfect! It sounds like you're on it!
June Gudeman
Exactly. A cute saying I recently heard: we all listed to the same radio station....WIIFM....What's In It For Me. When they submit their form, they receive an Alumni Sticker and a coffee mug. We are looking to replace the mug with a travel mug. Our graduates do have life long access to Career Services and our resume program.
We are in the process of send out a survey, for suggestions. In the near future, we plan to offer CEU's at a reduced cost or free. This will be a big enticement as all nurses must have CEU's for license renewal.
Debra,
I'm wondering what you plan to offer for your alumni? Sometimes we need to put ourselves in their shoes and ask ... why would I want to go to this event? Will you offer Career Services? Will you have a gift for your grads? How will you entice them to attend?
June Gudeman
We plan to host a picnic at a near by park. This will include both Alumni, Current Students, their family, faculty and staff.
We are planning on a Saturday afternoon in early October.
Since you never know about the weather, we would need the following:
1. rain date
2. communication of event
3. food
4. games and activities
5. a local radio station, for music
6. giveaways
Jody,
It sounds like you have some good ideas for your first event. I believe the challenge is always to come up with ideas that will be a 'draw' to your graduates. Involving alumni on your planning committee or team will help you with coming up with ideas that would make them want to come and participate. Everyone is SO busy, it has to be something they 'want' to attend.
June Gudeman
The first event would be a "launch" offering a welcome presentation welcoming them in, introducing them, recognizing their achievements if they wish to share and thanking them for their interest. Activities to participate in such as a breathwork group facilitated by the owner of our facility would be offered along with food and beverages, of course; a Q&A forum focused on listening to what the alumni would like to have from their association, the presentation of opportunities to participate in the development of the association, itself; the opportunity to relax and visit with fellow alumni, all to establish a sense of gratitude to each of them as well as for them to identify with, participate in the formation of, and establish personal connection with the alumni association.
Jennifer,
Inviting alumni to bring guests, particularly those that may have an interest in your institution, is a great way to get referrals.
June Gudeman
I think an Alumni mixer would be great, but give the alum the opportunity to bring 1 guest. So yes, they get to have a party and celebrate the new membership, but may offer a faster return on investment for the institution by having grads bring by others interested in the school to get their info for referrals.
Linnet,
A job fair would certainly be a good start, but would probably only draw those graduates that are currently unemployed. Possibly, you could create an event that would 'include' a job fair, but not have it be the sole draw to the event. This way working graduates could be included.
June Gudeman
