Your Voice Is Being Heard
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FROM THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION Your Voice Is Being Heard ALUMNI ASSOCIATION Jon Ellis ’98, president arlier this year, Lafayette completed the Alumni [email protected] Attitudes Survey, which offered alumni an opportunity to provide comprehensive feedback ALUMNI RELATIONS on perceptions of the College and general Rachel Nelson Moeller ’88, P’21 engagement. This survey was last conducted six years ago, executive director Eand the feedback received from the current poll is helping [email protected] to shape the strategic plan for alumni interactions and support over the coming five years. A big thank you to the For a list of Alumni Council members nearly 2,000 alumni who took time to provide thoughtful and Alumni Relations staff, responses. go to alumni.lafayette.edu The survey results were compared to the feedback from 223 Pfenning Alumni Center five years ago and peer institutions, so we were able to Easton, PA 18042-1768 benchmark historically and competitively. So what did 610-330-5040 we learn? Most notable is that 92% of respondents have Fax: 610-330-5833 a good-to-excellent opinion of Lafayette, which marks a GROETHING ROY [email protected] meaningful improvement from five years ago. However, what came through loud and clear is that alumni want to know what the College is doing CLASS NOTES to enhance the value of their degrees in order to ensure that Lafayette’s external reputation [email protected] is as constructive as the perceptions of alumni. The College’s strategic plan to expand the Ashli Truchon Novak, graphic designer student population while migrating to a need-blind admissions process that accepts based on merit regardless of financial resources will ultimately elevate the profile of Lafayette among elite liberal arts institutions in this country. This roadmap is intended to have benefits for alumni in terms of enhancing the perceived value of a Lafayette degree. Visit lafayette.edu and click on Another key takeaway from the survey is that alumni want more opportunities to leverage “alumni” to learn about special events, the career development resources of Lafayette both in terms of their own professional the Alumni Association, benefits, travel, and volunteer opportunities. advancement and in support of students. More specifically, alumni are seeking networking Go to leopardlink.lafayette.edu and potential employment opportunities as well as mentorship engagement with students. and log in with your Lafayette user Gateway Career Center recently launched GatewayLink, an online platform that allows name to register for events, update connections among alumni as well as students to enable professional development. I your profile, share photos, and encourage all of you to join GatewayLink and be an active participant to maximize the connect through social media. benefits of this network. Finally, alumni want to hear more stories of fellow alumni and the student experience as a way to affirm their pride in the College. A communications strategy is being developed that LafayetteCollegeAlumni is intended to address this desire for more updates on peers and current student profiles. We are very excited to embark on the next five years with your survey responses as a @LafayetteAlumni framework for formulating an effective strategic plan. On behalf of the Alumni Association, thank you for all you have done and continue to do in support of our alma mater. With Pard Pride, Jon Ellis ’98 President 80 LAFAYETTE FALL 2019 For more class news and photos, go to leopardlink.lafayette.edu/classnotes; click on “search,” then type in your class year. ClassNotes_Fall2019_R2.indd 80 11/6/19 2:08 PM The charts below provide highlights of the results from the alumni survey administered earlier this year. This was Lafayette’s second TAKING survey compiled in consultation with Performance Enhancement Group Ltd. Visit alumni.lafayette.edu/alumni-attitude-study for THEPulse additional survey information and findings. Audience Character Roles and Responsibilities NUMBER ERAS Total Alumni Respondents Mentoring students 82% 1973 and earlier 20% 23% Offering internships/externships for students 81% 1974-1980 11% 11% Serving as ambassadors promoting Lafayette College 77% 1981-1993 22% 24% Providing financial support for Lafayette College 75% 1994-2000 12% 7% Offering full-time employment for graduates 72% Attending alumni and 2001-2008 15% 14% Lafayette College events 56% Being involved with alumni 2009-2014 12% 12% leadership committees 50% Serving as alumni 2015-2018 8% 9% admissions representatives 49% Percentages are based on 29,506 total alumni and 1,860 respondents. Responsibilities of alumni rated as very important or critically important. Compare and Contrast: 2013 vs. 2019 Survey Results 60% 66% 49% 48% 58% 39% 41% 34% 30% 27% 26% 15% Good Great Good Great Good Excellent Good Excellent Good Excellent Good Excellent 2013 2019 2013 2019 2013 2019 How would you rate your decision Which of the following describes your Which of the following best describes to attend Lafayette College? overall current opinion of Lafayette College? your experience as an alumnus/a? Where Loyalty Lies Preferred Communications Student organization or activity* OVERALL ALUMNI Athletics Faculty or staff member* 30% 13% Friends READ LAFAYETTE VS. FOLLOW LAFAYETTE College Academic major or department* MAGAZINE FREQUENTLY SOCIAL MEDIA FREQUENTLY YOUNG ALUMNI ERA Social living group 9% 21% * For young alumni, their loyalty is greater for these areas: READ LAFAYETTE VS. FOLLOW LAFAYETTE academic major/dept., faculty/staff member, and student organization/activity. MAGAZINE FREQUENTLY SOCIAL MEDIA FREQUENTLY INFOGRAPHICS BY KEVIN HARDY FALL 2019 LAFAYETTE 81 Alumni Survey Infographics Ad_Fall 2019.indd 81 11/5/19 11:12 AM CLASSCLASS NOTES NOTES “Outpost Harry,” which he helped FOR MORE defend with American and United CLASS NEWS 1950 1951 Nations troops against Chinese and In perusing the summer edition of Robert Swain, native of Cape North Korean troops. For all class Lafayette I was pained to find no May, N.J., Korean War veteran, and Freeman was a platoon leader news, photographs, class notes for 1950. Obviously we an innovative and accomplished in Korea and was decoratively baby and wedding lost a superb class correspondent chemical engineer in the field of awarded. Back in the U.S., he has announcements, with Irv Bravman’s passing. plastics, for which he was inducted participated in reunions of Outpost While I am not volunteering to into the “Plastics Hall of Fame” in reunion planning, Harry Veterans. Freeman was fill those oversized shoes, perhaps 2009, died April 21, 2019, at home employed as marketing director for and more, go to I can encourage other classmates in East China, Mich., age 90. 13 states of IT Division of Collins leopardlink.lafayette. to send in updates on their doings. Robert entered the plastics Radio for which he was situated edu/classnotes. As we approach our 70th reunion, industry with Bakelite Corp. in Canada and Dallas, Texas. After Click on “search,” few of us are still leading overly He founded Chroma Corp. in landing a position as technical then type in active lives. In my own case, I’ve McHenry, Ill. From a 1,400-square- writer with Collins Radio of Cedar your class year. enjoyed surprisingly good health—a foot test startup, Chroma grew to Rapids, Iowa, Freeman founded good thing since my wife, Molly, a 200,000-square-foot innovation Bradford Technical Associates of Updates can be made hasn’t had the same good fortune; in color plastics. Robert was a Palo Alto. through Leopard Link I’ve turned into a fairly adequate member and managing director of Freeman married his high school or sent directly to your caregiver and am loving it. Plastics Pioneer Association. His sweetheart, Patricia Larned, in 1954, class correspondent. I had to give up tennis two years Chroma plant was destroyed by and they have two sons, Curtis and To volunteer to serve ago, so I’m substituting a revival fire in 1984, but Robert overcame Christopher. Patricia died in 2010. as a correspondent, of my bowling game. No 300s yet. the loss by shipping his plastic to Jim Dojan celebrated his 90th contact the Alumni On the more useful side I remain a competitor’s plant where he was birthday and is thankful for his Relations office. active in helping manage the affairs licensed to work until his Chroma Lafayette education. He specified of our Friends Meeting and other plant was rebuilt, preserving his economics professor as a mentor Class Notes may Quaker activities; I work closely Chroma’s innovative development in Jim’s rise to vice president of be edited for with Richard Bernard ’63 on and market position. Philips Electronics Corp. length and clarity. many of these. He’s a real mainstay Robert was a sailing enthusiast Jim played first base for the of local Quaker doings, in addi- from boyhood. He sailed the Great Leopards 9. He cites the team tion to volunteering at nearby key Lakes and made two saltwater trips and his fraternity pals for his Please upload notes museums. along the East Coast from Maine outstanding Lafayette experience. to Leopard Link or I’ve begun writing short columns to the Virgin Islands. He and Dick Jim has a grandson, Dr. Josh pass them along to on jazz for the monthly newsletter Hinterleiter, also a southern New Hollinger ‘09, and Josh’s wife is class correspondents produced in our life care commu- Jersey native, often sailed together Mellisa Larson Hollinger ‘09. by these deadlines: nity. Hitting the fitness room regu- in their maturing years. Robert was Josh is a podiatric surgeon and Spring Issue 12/15 larly is a ritual for what remains of a director of Great Lakes Cruising Mellisa, a geologist, is employed as Summer Issue 4/15 my free time. Club. He owned 15 prized sailing an environmental specialist in land Fall Issue 8/15 I periodically correspond with ships throughout his lifetime.