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Alumni Association Best Practices. “ Loyal Sons of Minerva…beyond the walls of our Alma Mater. ”. Intended Outcomes. Define focal points “ brand ” for successful A.A. Open discussion on potential stumbling blocks Open new communication lines between A.A.s
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Alumni Association Best Practices “Loyal Sons of Minerva…beyond the walls of our Alma Mater.”
Intended Outcomes • Define focal points “brand” for successful A.A. • Open discussion on potential stumbling blocks • Open new communication lines between A.A.s • Engage alumni and grow our alumni brotherhood!
What Can a Successful A.A. Do? • Enjoy and expand the bonds of brotherhood beyond graduation and home chapters • Develop the Brother Alumnus professionally • Serve the undergraduate chapter or areas as mentors, advisers, or board members • Stay young in Ritual, Member Development, Mentoring and Recruitment • Strong alumni ties guide strong chapters • Develop future volunteer leaders in Sigma Alpha Epsilon
What Makes Successful A.A. • Availability • Communication • Consistency/Repeatabilty • Successful Chapter practices carry to successful A.A. practices…and vice versa! • Network with other A.A.s in the Realm and apply for awards! • Alumni Associations tend to be isolated and static…needs to change to keep our alumni active. • Awards, updates in The Record, and new ideas from other AAs help growth.
What Can a Successful A.A. Do? • Availability: • Leaders of the A.A. should be available to college seniors, brothers new to the area, and general inquiries • Communication: • Build and maintain an email database. Send regular (quarterly) e-newsletter. Yearly hard mail newsletter. • Oregon Alpha e-newsletter • Consistency/Repeatability: • Set social calendar as early as possible. Best A.A.s hold the same event annually. Busy Alumni need time and predictability to attend events • e.g. Old Crow Christmas Tradition in Denver • e.g. Toledo hands out coins with three events: Steak Roast, Founders Day, Golf Outing
Benchmark Events Bring Back Alumni! • Examples of Events throughout realm • Homecoming should be the platform for Alumni Association activities, not THE sole event • Kansas City AA Christmas Fundraiser • Greater Atlanta AA Speaker series • SAE National Softball, Golf, Poker, etc…all these started as local alumni ideas! • Find ways to support the chapter • Mentoring programs • Newport, CA “Blazer Drive” • Buy graduation cords for seniors • Recruitment events and use the Ritual: build the Graduation Ceremony
What Can a Successful A.A. Do? • Successful A.A. operate much like successful chapterson the next level! • Collect regular dues • Submit paperwork regularly with FSC • KEEP RECRUITING to build the bench! • Interact with other A.A.s and compete for annual awards • Make the most of Convention • Raise Money • Send more undergraduates to Leadership School • Create a trust through Foundation to award scholarships • Improve the lives of undergrads • Recognize Successful Alumni! • Coordinate keynote speakers for events • Volunteer awards should be utilized
Building the Bench • Alumni Associations are the broadest and most social aspect of Sigma Alpha Epsilon’s powerful volunteer system • Alumni Mentors, Housing Corporations, and Advisory Boards typically find members from successful and active A.A.s • Volunteerism at high levels of SAE are driven by alumni associations!
Building the Bench - • The best A.A. have active members of all ages and experiences: young alumni, family men, and retirees. • Each brother and his professional experience build strength in the A.A. • Attracting a diverse A.A. group comes from a balanced variety of social events • Founders Day attracts everyone • Monthly Happy Hours might only attract younger members • Golf outings might only attract older members • The KEY is to overlap and interact your A.A. and provide them a network of brotherhood and growth.
Resources Available • TGI Online Certification Program thetgi.sae.net • www.saerecord.net • Alumni Awards link on thetgi.sae.net • Everyone should use www.sae.net to stay informed and find resources • Outstanding Housing Corporation Award • Outstanding Chapter or Area Alumni Association Award • Bill Fiscus Outstanding Area Alumni Association Award • Stuart Zoock Outstanding Alumni Advisory Board • Outstanding Alumni Association and Housing Corporation Communication Award • Special Event/Project Award Question-and-Answer Session Do not forget to complete the post-webinar survey.