To Nick Famulare '92, there are distinct similarities between his old job as associate dean of admissions and his new one as director of alumni relations.
“In admissions, I've been telling people why they should come to Union,” he says. “In alumni relations, I want to remind them about why they came.”
Famulare began his new role at the College on Jan. 1. Tom Gutenberger, vice president for college relations, announced the appointment by saying, “Since coming to Union a dozen years ago as a student, Nick has come to know thousands of members of the Union family. His leadership will provide a huge boost to our alumni relations effort.”
Famulare says that in both admissions and alumni relations, “People like the personal attention. It's worked in admissions, and that's what we need to do in alumni.”
He noted that the success of the alumni relations effort relies heavily on the alumni themselves. “They're the ones who are out there talking about the place,” he says. “We hope that the more involved they are, the more eager they will be to spread the word about how great Union is.”
He says he also hopes to cultivate current Union students to make them active as alumni volunteers.
Famulare already has been involved with planning campus alumni events, such as ReUnion and Homecoming, as well as a number of alumni club events around the country, such as an event at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles hosted by Prof. Charlotte Eyerman, an art historian.
Famulare, a native of Little Falls, N.Y., worked in admissions at Vassar College before returning to his alma mater in 1994 as assistant dean of admissions. He was promoted to associate dean of admissions at Union in 1997.
He earned a bachelor's degree in political science with a minor in economics. He was president of Sigma Chi fraternity and has served as a class agent since 1997. He is taking classes in Union's MBA program.