Thank you, cardholders!
Since the launch of the program in 1997, more than 600 members of the Union family have selected the Union College MasterCard credit card as a way to show their support and pride. A special “thank you” goes out to every cardholder who used the card and helped generate more than $8,000 for alumni programs such as ReUnion, Homecoming and Family Weekend, and alumni club activities.
Cardholders generate income for the Alumni Council at no additional cost to them. MBNA America, the card's issuing bank, provides funds to the council for each new account that is opened and contributes additional funds every time the card is used to make a purchase. The Union College MasterCard Credit Card Program is a great benefit to cardholders and to the College. For those interested in becoming a cardholder, please contact the Alumni Office at 1-888-THE.IDOL x 6168.
Special job fair
attracts students
The Corporate Relations Office continues to work in partnership with the business community to improve student job opportunities and the Capital Region's economic base.
In early January, Union held a job fair
on campus focused on paid summer internships and training programs. Open to all college students, the fair featured twenty-one employers and attracted eighty-two Union students and more
than 120 from other colleges. “We were gratified by the turnout and also by the favorable comments from local media
and business leaders who saw this as a way to encourage students to stay in
the region after graduation and work in the world-class business community we have here,” said Brad Lewis, director of corporate relations.
The Corporate Relations Office also launched a 2002 summer jobs-on-line internet site; offered executive internet courses, taught by Union technology experts, on PowerPoint use and website design; and co-sponsored several events on campus as part of its continuing efforts to integrate Union with the community.
Union's Annual Business Campaign to raise money for local scholarships continued, with the help of an executive committee of alumni and local business leaders, chaired by Timothy Thornton '67. Last year's campaign supported nine local students, and this year, Lewis says, “we hope to expand our support to the double-digit level.”
Parents: let us hear
from you
At the end of January, the Executive Committee of the Parents Council had a very useful and productive on-campus meeting, discussing everything from the recruitment of admissions and career development volunteers to regional parent events and the upcoming Spring Family Weekend on May 10 -12.
This mid-May weekend is a wonderful opportunity to feature the work that our students have been doing all year long. On Friday, the Charles Proteus Steinmetz Symposium will highlight creative, scholarly, and research achievement. Parents are welcome to take in all these presentations.
Saturday kicks off with a breakfast for parents. Also, two new events have been added to Saturday's schedule: a panel discussion on “Union Housing in the Millennium” and a Parents Reception hosted by President Roger H. Hull. On both Friday and Saturday nights we will have presentations spotlighting our students, and on Sunday morning the weekend closes with a Mother's Day brunch-not to be missed, especially if you happen to be a mom.
The parents' questionnaire has been sent out, and we are in the process of collecting responses. Please take this opportunity to share your thoughts about your family's Union experience. If you haven't already filled out the form, you can visit the Union website,
www.union.edu/Parents/Survey.php, and fill it out online. The results will be tabulated and presented to College administrators. In addition, we will also send the results to parents at the beginning of June. This is a terrific chance for you to be heard!
The Parents Fund is doing very well. Our volunteers (all parents) have almost completed their calling, as have our student affiliates. We thank you for participating in the fund.
Finally, we have been adding more information to the Union website that we think parents will find particularly useful-including links to accommodation info, a Commencement page, and the Concordienses (student paper), as well as a window into what students are up to on campus.
If you have any questions or would like to get involved in any Parents Council activity, please contact Lis Bischoff-Ormsbee, director of parents programs, at
Parents_Council@union.edu. It won't hurt a bit.
Tom and Sally Simons
Co-chairs, Parents Council
90th Annual Fund coming
down the home stretch
Helping our students.
Enhancing our facilities.
Expanding our programs.
All of these are possible thanks to
your support of the Union College
Annual Fund.
To sustain a community of promising and committed students, the College needs your support to assure every deserving student the opportunity to excel.
Where our students learn has changed dramatically; learning occurs within and outside the classroom. To keep our campus relevant and competitive requires your support.
As science and technology transform the imagined into the practical, the College must develop new programs to fully prepare students for the world they will enter. These programs, which enhance competitiveness, cannot be developed without your support.
Your support helps us educate
tomorrow's leaders.
Your support helps us develop the
facilities our students require.
Your support helps us offer the programs demanded by a changing world.
If you haven't already done so, please make your gift to the Annual Fund today. You can mail your check to Union College Annual Fund, 807 Union Street, Schenectady, N.Y. 12308. You can call us at 1-888-843-4365, ext. 6175. Or you can
go to our website at www.union.edu
and click on “Make a Gift to Union” when
it appears on the flashing ticker on the left side of the home page. Remember,
the Annual Fund year ends on June 30.
Thank you for helping us meet
tomorrow's challenges today.