Kicking off 2018 with a get-together, nearly 70 Alumni Campus Employees gathered on January 9 to enjoy good food and conversation at the Fifth Annual Welcome Back Luncheon. Organized by the Office of Alumni Relations as a way to thank alumni employees for their dedication and service, and to let them know about volunteer and philanthropic opportunities, the luncheon is a great way to catch up with colleagues and meet fellow alumni employees.<\/p>\n
Although many may not know it, more than 400 alumni currently work at Montclair State as faculty or staff. Alumni Campus Employees (ACE) are special members of the campus community, having spent time here as students before becoming staff and faculty. They share a unique perspective on and dedication to the University. Alumni campus employees use their experiences to create strong connections to current students, understanding the importance of building a personal connection as a way to help them become active alumni.<\/p>\n
Kathleen Ragan ’74, ’80 MA, Associate Vice President for Student Development and Campus Life, spoke to the group and shared her Montclair State story. \u201cThe students in those cluster years of the mid and late seventies, embraced Montclair State. We started the shuttle service and experienced the construction of the Student Center and Richardson Hall. Carpe Diem \u2013 we seized the day,\u201d says Ragan.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday, as we celebrate our bond as fellow alumni at this luncheon, I suggest to you that we have the responsibility to pass along this Montclair State tradition and heritage \u2013 large university with a small college feel \u2013 with its myriad of programs, activities, employment opportunities, academic programs and choices, choices, choices,\u201d says Ragan. \u201cIt is for my special memories, my friends for life, and the opportunity to return to Montclair State 13 years ago as an Associate VP that I choose not to give of just my time, but also financially.\u201d<\/p>\n
As far as giving to the University, Ragan adds, \u201cworking here makes it even easier to give back. The payroll deduction program is awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n
Director of Annual Giving Kara Baldwin Brennan \u201892 also spoke to the group. \u201cMy Montclair State experience was a fantastic one both academically and socially,\u201d says Brennan. \u201cI lived on campus in Blanton and then on Clove Road, worked on campus for the Dean of Students, and was a member of the field hockey team for 4 years and made life-long friends\u201d.<\/p>\n
Brennan also encouraged attendees to reflect about how Montclair State has changed their lives.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs you think about the impact Montclair State has made for you \u2013 consider paying it forward and make a gift and designate it as you see fit \u2013 perhaps to the Emergency Scholarship Fund to help that student who has been faced with a personal hardship; or designate it to the Book Fund to help a student purchase the resources necessary to be successful; or designate it to the Red Hawk Pantry to help a student in need or to the schools greatest needs, the Fund for Montclair State.\u201d<\/p>\n
John T. Shannon, Vice President for University Advancement, took a few moments to address the audience and thanked everyone for their loyalty and service to the University. \u201cPlease be open to speaking to our talented Call Center students when they call during their calling shifts,\u201d says Shannon. \u201cThe students enjoy hearing your stories and are committed to helping build a stronger philanthropic base with our alumni.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Office of Alumni Relations continues to provide volunteer opportunities for this dedicated group of alumni as well as casual gatherings where alumni can get to know one another. Those interested in getting involved with the Alumni Campus Employee group and\/or volunteering at events should contact Deb Corasio at 973-655-4207 or corasiod@montclair.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n We invite you to view photos from the event<\/a>. Those interested in making a gift<\/a> can do so online.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Kicking off 2018 with a get-together, nearly 70 Alumni Campus Employees gathered on January 9 to enjoy good food and conversation at the Fifth Annual Welcome Back Luncheon. Organized by the Office of Alumni Relations as a way to thank alumni employees for their dedication and service, and to let them know about volunteer and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":206442,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-206441","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-76_alumni-news-and-events"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/206441","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=206441"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/206441\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":207383,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/206441\/revisions\/207383"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/206442"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=206441"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=206441"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/alumni\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=206441"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}