WOU Magazine Fall 2010: Feature stories
New staff Q & A
If you’ve received a call, letter or e-mail from University Advancement lately, you likely noticed a couple of new names. We’d like to put faces to those names and introduce you to the new Alumni Relations and Annual Fund team: Tommy, Melissa and Adrienne.
Tommy Love, director of annual giving and alumni relations
Contact Tommy at 503-838-8134 or lovet@wou.edu
Explain your role in University Advancement.
My role is a newly combined position overseeing both Alumni Relations and the Annual Fund. The combined position allows me to have a close working relationship with our alumni. Hearing their stories is important to understanding our culture as an institution and remembering those important pieces of our history as we grow. At the same time, it provides the opportunity to work directly with everyone (alumni, students, parents, friends, faculty and staff) who has the desire and ability to support the university financially at any level as we continue to provide the same high quality education that is expected from the Western family.
What attracted you to WOU?
In one word: opportunity. Western is known as an institution that provides a wonderful opportunity for our students, especially our first-generation students. This is very important to me as I am also a first-generation graduate. At the same time, this position provided a wonderful opportunity for me professionally to grow in my career in higher education and as an advancement professional. And I must say my wife and I are very excited to have the opportunity to live in the Willamette Valley.
What have you enjoyed the most about your time here?
I arrived at the perfect time – just as the winter rain was ending. So the weather has been absolutely wonderful compared to the heat back home in North Carolina at this time of the year. Oregon is such a beautiful and diverse state in its landscape. But I think the thing I have liked the most, and will always enjoy, are the stories I hear from alumni. To me, buildings are great, but the people really bring the brick and mortar to life and Western has always been a fantastic institution because of its people.
What is your background in the area of advancement?
My background in higher education has served me well as an admissions counselor, director of student activities, and as a basketball coach before getting in to my role in university advancement. All have been valuable in providing insight as to the struggles each area encounters as we work to meet the needs of our students. For the last seven and a half years I have been in fundraising and alumni relations at two other institutions where we significantly raised the amount of financial support given as well as the number of donors participating in the success of the schools.
If you could tell alumni and friends of WOU one thing, what would it be?
We have accomplished a tremendous amount in our history but we have a lot of work ahead and I would like to use a quote by Arthur Levine, president of the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation to illustrate this point. “For everyone who finds a path to college, there are thousands – millions – of others who can’t. The cost of losing them by the wayside is incalculable”.
What are you looking forward to the most about this academic and fiscal year?
The chance to meet more and more of our alumni and the opportunity to help our students in every way possible through our fundraising efforts.
What are some of the exciting things that our alumni and friends can look forward to in terms of alumni relations and giving?
As we move forward and evaluate our program, we will look to make adjustments where they are needed while also initiating a few new programs such as our Senior Kick Off to ensure that our seniors start their final year on the right foot and we are looking to increase our presence with on-campus philanthropy. In alumni relations, I am excited to be working with our alumni on how to make our programs and services better – what services should we offer, what can we do to attract more alumni to our events including Homecoming, etc. For example, I am really excited to be moving forward with one idea that began before my arrival which is an event in Hawaii. It is still in the planning stages but we have a large and loyal group of people in Hawaii who care deeply about Western Oregon and in the spring of 2011 we plan on taking a bit of Oregon to the islands.
Melissa Carlin, annual fund program assistant
Contact Melissa at 503-838-8814 or carlinm@wou.edu
Explain your role in University Advancement.
My role with University Advancement is to educate alumni and friends of Western and share with them the power of collective annual giving. I have the privilege of working with parents, friends, current students, and alumni to remind them of the benefits of philanthropy. It is my job to not only cultivate funds for student scholarships, but promote WOU and its students and their accomplishments.
What attracted you to WOU?
Before I was ever a part of University Advancement I was a Western student. It was the atmosphere of WOU that attracted me as both an incoming freshman four years ago, and a staff member today. This is a stunning campus in the sense that once you come here you are accepted into part of a community. WOU has given me the opportunity to build relationships not only within the campus itself, but also locally.
What have you enjoyed most about your time here?
What I have enjoyed most about being WOU staff is the fact that I get to relive my memories from all my years as a student. Every time I pass the education building I get to remember when my flip flops broke and I fell like a klutz to the ground sending my notebooks and purse flying. And I can’t help but laugh when I pass Werner University Center, and my mind jumps back to my winning the limbo contest during New Student Week my freshman year right in the middle of the commons. How fortunate am I to be able to remember these funny random times of college that most people would forget?
What’s your background in the area of giving?
My junior year I was hired on as the call center coordinator for WOU’s Phonathon Program. I was able to work closely with students, and make them excited about WOU and the Annual Fund, so that they in turn could call and excite our alumni about WOU’s latest happenings and giving. Ever since then, I’ve been hooked on fundraising!
If you could tell alumni and friends of WOU one thing, what would it be?
Every gift counts! Even small gifts can really add up. Giving back to Western isn’t just a bill, or an obligation, giving back to Western is an opportunity to improve our students’ education and give them the resources they need to be successful. How rewarding is that!
What are you looking forward to most about this academic and fiscal year?
I will work hard to make people fall in love with Western all over again. I want us to ignite the school spirit mentality for not only present students, but future Wolves, and alumni. With that said, I also hope to educate and promote the importance of giving back to WOU, so that our programs can continue to thrive. I dream that WOU students will be able to have the same, if not greater, opportunities that I had as a student.
Tell us the most interesting encounter you’ve had in your position so far.
Attending the Presidents Club Dinner! It was so influential to be in a room surrounded by people who are just as passionate about Western as I am. The event excited me, and has motivated me to continue to give back to WOU so that one day I can be there not only as staff, but as a true member of the Presidents Club.
What are some exciting things that our alumni and friends can look forward to in terms of alumni relations and giving?
We have a great team here at University Advancement; we work hard as a team to promote and sustain Western. Alumni and friends can look forward to new energy and new ideas as we plan for philanthropy battles, alumni events, and new ways to keep you informed and excited about what’s going on here on campus.
Adrienne Hare, alumni relations program assistant
Contact Adrienne at 503-838-8281 or harea@wou.edu
Explain your role in University Advancement.
I like to think of my position as a liaison between the alumni and the university. I am responsible for planning and implementing programs and events pertaining to both alumni by degree and alumni by choice! This includes homecoming, reunions, and regional fundraising, networking, and social events both in Monmouth and around the region. I try to keep alums up to date via outlets like the monthly e-newsletter, Facebook and our new WOU Alumni group on Linkedin.
What attracted you to WOU?
My husband (the new athletic director, Daniel Hare)! The gorgeous campus and the folks (like you) who adore this place, make it hard not to fall in love with Western!
What have you enjoyed most about your time here?
Everyone has been so friendly and welcoming. Also, the weather and views are incredible, we came from Oklahoma and Texas, so I’ll take rain over tornadoes, 100 degree heat, and flash flooding any day!
What’s your background in the area of alumni relations?
I am actually new to the alumni relations “world.” I previously worked for a foundation management and consulting company that managed nine private family foundations, several city and statewide foundations, and a state trust. We also provided board development and consulting services to non-profits across the state of Oklahoma to help them set and achieve their goals.
If you could tell alumni and friends of WOU one thing, what would it be?
Get excited about WOU! There are so many great things happening here…find out how you can get involved and stay connected!
What are you looking forward to most about this academic and fiscal year?
Finding out how we can better serve our alumni, giving alumni more opportunities to get plugged in, and re-vamping our G.O.L.D. (Graduates of the Last Decade) program.
Tell us the most interesting encounter you’ve had in your position so far.
I can’t just pick one! Every encounter I have with an alumnus is interesting. Whether they come in or call to share a story for our newsletter, or ask for our help in reconnecting old roommates, or just update their information–you name it! I love getting to hear how this university has helped those who have passed through it achieve their professional goals, meet their soulmate, discover their passion….each story…each experience is unique.
What are some exciting things that our alumni and friends can look forward to in terms of alumni relations and giving?
Fun e-newsletters and contests, events and opportunities to meet and network with other alumni in your area as well as opportunities to come back to this gorgeous campus for homecoming and reunion events.
