By Web site Editor Admin
Those who once stood in the same shoes can often give the greatest guidance. Most University students dream of finding that “right person,” who will give that great recommendation, pull that resume to the top of the pile and help them land a job.
The University says the Alumni House can help find that special person, who just a few years ago was also looking for a career path and a job. However, expanding that network and finding the alumni who will be most helpful might take longer than expected.
The Alumni House does help students get in touch with specific alumni for various reasons, but it takes time. Since alumni information is private, there is nothing the Alumni House can do to willingly grant the information without the permission.
“I can’t give out contact information but I can gladly write a letter asking their [alumni] permission,” said Lisbeth Rerecich, the receptionist who is responsible for forwarding alumni information requests for students.
“I understand where they are coming from,” Sean Moran a junior audio/video/film major, said. “Because when I am an alumni I don’t want students to be able to contact me whenever they want.”
The speed of the alumni response varies because of their life circumstances and the time it takes for them to receive the request.
“I think it is fine,” Pamela Rappaport, a junior TV/film/busines major, said. “I mean it is all about privacy and respecting other people’s wishes. If the alumni wanted us to easily get in touch with them, they would make it available in other ways.”
Besides this form of contact, the Alumni House offers a number of programs to connect alumni with current students.
“We want to bridge the relationship between students and alumni,” Vincent Federici, directo of the Alumni House, said.
To bridge this gap, the Alumni House has created a program named HofstraCAN! This program connects students and alumni, one-on-one, to discuss career opportunities and ways of achieving goals. The Alumni House sets students up with an alumnus or multiple alumni based on career goals and interests. This enables the alumnus to do their best in advising the student in the necessary direction.
Both the student and alumni benefit from the experience together, Federici said. The student learns how to use resources and the alumni get the satisfaction of helping someone with their future.
One of the first HofstraCAN! Program participants was William Agresti. He is also serving his second term as president of the Alumni Organization.
Alumni also can volunteer for the HART (Hofstra Alumni Recruitment Team) program, in which over 700 alumni across the country attend local fairs and high schools to recruit students from all over the nation. These alumni help broaden the array of students from different areas of the world that apply to the University.
All alumni belong to the different chapters of the Alumni Organization. An example is the Gray Wig Alumni group, which just put together the production of Ragtime at the University earlier this semester. For students who just graduated to alumni status, there is also a group of young alumni to join.
The alumni chapters as well as the board of directors meet in the “Great Room” also located in the alumni house.
Above and beyond the local alumni chapters are regional chapters across the nation, where University alumni from specific areas meet. These graduates also help recruit University students from around the world.
A painted wooden representation of the University seal is the focal point when entering the Libby and Joseph G. Shapiro Alumni House. This 50th graduation anniversary gift from the class of 1945 has “Je Maintiendary,” which translates to “I stand steadfast” in Old French, carved into it. This is only one gift given to the University by alumni who remain in touch.
Inside the Alumni House students and graduates can meet in a comfortable setting. The meeting room, called the “Great Room,” is very much like a living room or den of a house with a television, radio, couches, small round tables, chairs, Hofstra Society’s Wall of Honor and mostly black and white alumni photos dressing the walls.
The Alumni Office stresses that alumni stay in contact with the University by filling out the “keep in touch” forms on the University Web site so that the Alumni House can contact graduates about certain topics or events pertaining to their career and interests.
The Alumni House’s latest effort to bring alumni back to the University is, “‘Everybody Loves Raymond’: Inside the Writers Room of America’s Favorite Sitcom.” This event invites two University alumni back to discuss the sitcom, Everybody Loves Raymond. Phil Rosenthal, the creator and 1981 graduate, and Monica Horan, an actress on the show and 1984 graduate, will both be on campus to put on the special performance
Although most people who use the Alumni House are alumni themselves, the Alumni House is trying to broaden their participants to more and more current students. Tables are set up during Career Week and Common Hour to spread the word about the benefits that the Alumni Organization has to offer students.
There is one new program that current students can participate in called CAST (Connect Alumni and Students). Currently, there are about 15 students enrolled in this program. As Federici described, the students involved are a “mouthpiece of what’s going on here and now” on campus.
For students, all the programs are complimentary, as well as most of the alumni volunteer services. The next step is to get students and alumni together more and more to benefit the community here at the University.
One of the functions of the Alumni House is to help bridge the gap between current students and graduates. (Erika Luft/The Chronicle)