When I reflect on the expectations I had when I first became a student fellow, it is hard to imagine how wrong I was about what my experience would be working in the volunteer engagement and stewardship area. I originally thought that working for the Alumni Association would be a lot of sending mail to alumni asking them to donate. What I found was a community of people all working together under one goal — the betterment of the alumni community and IU itself.

My first exposure to the size of IUAA and the role it plays in the community was the Distinguished Alumni Service Award (DASA) dinner and scholarship luncheon. I had no idea that we gave so many scholarships, so meeting the students we support was eye-opening. Since then, I have had the opportunity to see two other aspects of the Association: The Past Chairs Council meeting and the Winter Executive Council meeting.

The Past Chairs of the IUAA are all former chairs of the governing board, the Board of Managers, and their meeting most recently was held in early November. At this event, I met Lynn Lewis, chair of the Association in 2001-02, and the one whose fellowship I am honored to hold. I was fortunate to spend time with Lynn and other past chairs during lunch, and I look forward to seeing them again. I learned so much about the IUAA by listening to their conversations about their time as leaders and by seeing their continued commitment to serving IU.

The Executive Council meeting experience once again completely changed my perception of the IUAA. During one of the sessions, we reviewed President Whitten’s 2030 plan and applied it to how we can develop better alumni outreach and engagement over the next 7 years. The quote that will stick with me (until I hopefully have a chance to be on the Council) is, “People hear ‘Alumni Association’ and think hide their wallets, but they never think about the impact we have on the community.”

This is the mentality that I want to continue to have as a student fellow for the next year and a half. After being able to see the process of how the Alumni Association works, I am looking forward to volunteering as an alum after I graduate.