Alumni Council Initiatives
The Alumni Council focuses on six major areas throughout the year. They are:
SwatTalks
SwatTalks are virtual seminars that feature alumni and faculty excelling in their fields and sharing their knowledge and experience. Each talk is hosted on Zoom, last approximately one hour, and is open to the entire Swarthmore community. Most talks are recorded and available for later viewing.
Faculty/Staff Engagement
Pizza and beer with faculty is an Alumni Council-sponsored event which aims to build connection between current faculty and the Council.
Student Engagement
The Alumni Council spearheads a variety of activities to engage and support student development and campus life for current students. This includes career networking events, a career clothing giveaway, a senior send-off communication, on-campus trivia nights and food trucks, and the annual senior gift challenge, which is a fundraising campaign to support the Student Emergency Fund. The Lang Scholars Spotlight program, which helps Lang Opportunity Scholars develop their project ideas, is also led by the Alumni Council.
Advancement and Affinity Group Engagement
The Council oversees two alumni awards — the Eugene Lang Impact Award and the Arabella Carter Community Service Award — which are presented annually by the Alumni Council during Alumni Weekend. Other aspects of alumni engagement are developed each year to connect with the broader alumni community, including the Alumni Council's financial support of the College, leading the alumni match for the Senior Gift Challenge, and partnering with alumni affinity groups on events.
Sustainability
The Council supports the College’s commitment to honor the natural environment and protect it and the people who depend on it by connecting with students in the Presidential Sustainability Research Fellowship program and, more recently, engaging in conversations about how sustainability issues intersect with endowment considerations.
Nominations
The Nominations Committee facilitates the identification and recruitment of candidates to serve on Alumni Counci to ensure diverse and dynamic membership that represents the full Alumni Association. Learn more about the nomination process.
If you are interested in learning more or have questions, please email acpresident@swarthmore.edu.
