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This past year was a successful one for the Alumni Association. Nearly 27,000 alumni and their guests participated in alumni events throughout the year, both on and off-campus. Given the slowing economy, we were delighted by that level of participation, which was reflected in other areas.
More scholarship funds were raised and awarded by alumni chapters than any year in our history. Our chapters also enthusiastically supported community service projects to engage alumni in contributing their time to worthy causes. Additionally, increasing numbers of recent graduates are becoming engaged in chapter and campus constituency group events.
On the following pages, we illustrate how our volunteer alumni and Alumni Association programs are having an impact. We have more than 207,000 alumni living around the globe, and their successes--professionally, philanthropically, and as community servants and leaders--continue to elevate the name and reputation of Virginia Tech. Just as importantly, our alumni display a sense of spirit and loyalty that ranks among the best in the world of higher education.
Alumni Association programs support students, celebrate faculty excellence, serve the broad base of alumni, engage leadership potential,
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and embrace community. These five areas are critical to fulfilling our organizational mission. We look upon alumni as an extension of the core values of the university. Each group of graduates builds upon the successes of those who preceded them. And all alumni feel immense pride toward and ownership of this special place.
There are important ways alumni can "pay it forward" to help other alumni in this weaker economy. The Alumni Association is placing emphasis on networking among alumni to strengthen prospects for finding and filling employment opportunities.
The Hokie Nation Network (HNN) is a secure online resource for all alumni--plus current students, faculty and staff--to list jobs and post resumes. Like other social networks, such as Facebook and LinkedIn, HNN is free and easy to use; its advantage is that it is exclusively for Hokies. We hope it will become the go-to site to match alumni who have openings to fill with skilled alumni who are seeking job opportunities.
Our Hokie Nation is resilient. We have been through challenging times and now face a changing global economy. However, we know how to pull together and help each other in difficult times. That is part of being a Hokie--we help those in need. And we will continue serving and nurturing an expanding Hokie Nation.
Tom Tillar '69
Vice President for Alumni Relations
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