Mark Webster '88 never misses an opportunity to boost his alma
mater with high schoolers. “I've got a captive audience,” says the Andover,
Mass., dentist. “I tell them to open wide, and I talk about Union.”
The College's admissions staff has been turning to volunteers like
Webster for help in staying in regular contact with students and staff at nearly 200 high
schools through its Adopt-A-School Program.
Though recruiting students through the alumni network is nothing new to
admissions, the program has gained momentum since it was formalized last year with about
150 volunteers adopting schools, said Lilia Tiemann, alumni admissions recruiter, who
administers the program with Kristine Gernert-Dott '86, associate dean of admissions.
Alumni choose a school in or near their hometown. After an initial visit
with an admissions officer from the College, alumni admissions volunteers become the
primary local Union contact for guidance staff and students, meeting with students and
then tracking their progress through the admissions season.
The program is especially valuable because it extends the scope of
Union's admissions effort by allowing admissions officers to tap into other areas,
according to Gernert-Dott and Tiemann.
Webster, last year named Alumni Admissions Outstanding Volunteer for his
work in Adopt-a-School and other initiatives, has adopted no fewer than three schools
– Redding, North Redding and Andover.