Pomona College Alumni Association Board Meeting Minutes
August 10, 2024 – 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Virtual Meeting
Officer & Committee Chair Attendees: Andrea Venezia '91, Monika Moore '03, Stuart Friedel '08, Robi Ganguly '00, Joshua Rodriguez '13, Emily Zheng '19, Nina Zhou '19
Board Members in Attendance: Michael Bright '10, Lauren Clarke '83, Renee Dupont '80, Anne Elsberry '91, Tray Hammond '22, Jackie Huffman '83, Anthony King '97, Toran Langford '21, Linda Luisi '81, Jim Sutton '84 P'22, James Zhang, Emily Zheng '19
Guests and Staff Attendees: Pritina Irvin, Kerry Martin, Kristen Romero
Excused Absences: Soren Austenfeld '15, Eliza Bennitt '98, Miguel Delgado-Garcia '20, Te'auna Patterson '18, Tricia Sipowicz '85, Victoria Sancho Lobis (Faculty Representative)
Quorum: The quorum for a meeting of the Board shall be a majority of the voting members. Therefore, this meeting had the necessary number of voting members (18) in attendance for a quorum.
Call to Order: meeting was called to order at 10:00am by President Andrea Venezia ’91.
Prior Meeting Minutes: from 6.22.24 were distributed to the Board for review.
Questions: Andrea Venezia ’91 asked that the process improvements discussed in the meeting to be made available to board members as a separate document.
Comments: Linda Luisi ’81 mentioned that although her 3-year term had ended, she has since been approved to serve an extended year on the alumni board for the 2025 Academic Year.
Corrections: Josh Rodriguez ’13 mentioned the correction of Julie “Seibel” to Siebel ’84.
Absent any other questions, comments or corrections, Stuart Friedel ’08 motioned to approve the minutes. Lauren Clarke ’83 P'18 seconded the motion. Minutes approved without dissent; motion passed.
FY25 Board Member Introductions: President Andrea Venezia ’91 asked the board members to introduce themselves by answering the following prompts:
- Name, Graduation Year, Major, Campus Involvements, Hometown, Current City/Cities
- What are you most passionate about in regard to your PCAAB service?
- What does success look like to you for this year?
- In the chat, share one weird or fun fact from your time at Pomona
President’s Remarks: Andrea Venezia ’91 reviewed the Pomona College Alumni Association Board Mission Statement and Purpose, and gave a brief recap of the New Member Onboarding process. Andrea emphasized the importance of clearly stating meeting objectives to ensure board members understand the purpose of their service, highlighting the importance of connection, and collaboration for effective board functioning with the following key points:
- Clear Objectives: Meetings should begin with clear communication of objectives to keep the board focused on its purpose and service.
- Establishing Meaningful Connections: Despite the challenges of virtual meetings, efforts will be made to foster meaningful connections among board members throughout the year.
- Board Roles: A focus will be placed on distinguishing between the roles of advisory and fiduciary boards, setting norms for these responsibilities.
- Campus Collaboration: Andrea shared the importance Engaging campus partners to share key priorities and projects with the board.
Andrea shared her plan for the board to shift from committee updates to focusing on strategic discussions about important issues:
- Each committee is to develop a strategy with 2-3 key goals for the year, focusing on areas where they can make the most impact.
- These plans should include clear success indicators, timelines, and roles.
- To enhance discussions at board meetings, committees are expected to submit written plans and questions ahead of time, allowing for more informed conversations and action.
- The emphasis is on preparation, learning, and achieving meaningful accomplishments by year’s end.
- Ending each meeting with clarity about next steps, including who's responsible and timeline.
Andrea reviewed the Roles and Responsibilities document with the board, highlighting the key points of the working document with the group.
Alumni and Family Engagement Updates: Monika Moore ’03, director of alumni and family engagement provided the board with updates from the alumni and family engagement staff perspective and the College’s perspective on the role of the Board of Trustees versus the Alumni Advisory Board:
- Staffing update: Kalyn Rose Miller will be moving to Parent and Family Giving team as a Development Officer this Fall. The vacant role/ job description will be redrafted to fit the new needs of the Department.
- BOT vs. Alumni Advisory Board: The Alumni Board and the Board of Trustees play different but complementary roles. The Board of Trustees is responsible for fiduciary oversight and making large strategic decisions, such as approving budgets and enrollment targets, but they are not involved in day-to-day operations. In contrast, the Alumni Advisory Board provides critical insights, offering nuanced advice on decisions that impact the broader community. The Alumni Association’s Past President's Council also meets regularly to receive updates and provide strategic insights, as well as to select alumni award recipients each year. Both boards work together to support the college’s long-term goals.
In closing, Monika Moore ’03 asked, in a spirit of openness and partnership, that the board trust in the staff; their internal strategies and expertise, explaining that staff are focused on achieving goals set by leadership and seek partnership with the board to enhance these efforts, however, emphasizing the need for the freedom to act independently in executing their responsibilities.
Campus Partners Strategic Insights
- Associated Students of Pomona College: Devlin Orlin ’25 a goal to increase Community Engagement on campus. Delvin believes that working with the alumni board can be a conduit to strengthening the relationship between Alumni and current students, stating that one of the challenges of campus is a sincere disconnect between Student Affairs and students. There are unresolved negative emotions surrounding Pomona College, particularly related to recent arrests on campus and the school's ongoing involvement in those charges. This has impacted the community's perception of the institution, making it unlikely that students, especially the senior class, will be willing to donate money. While the goal of fundraising is important, there is foundational work that must be done to address these concerns and rebuild trust before successfully soliciting donations. Partnering to resolve these issues is essential for fostering a positive relationship with the institution and encouraging future contributions.
- Pomona College Faculty: Unable to be present.
- Admission: Tray Hammond ’22 shared his focus on several key priorities regarding alumni engagement and admissions, aiming to increase the reach and impact of alumni engagement while supporting diversity and access initiatives:
- Access and Diversity: The Admissions Office continues to prioritize access, emphasizing the need to represent various forms of diversity on campus, including socio-economic, geographical, and experiential backgrounds. This includes fostering conversations across differences in an increasingly polarized world.
- Middle-Income Initiative: Working on strategies to increase the socioeconomic diversity of the student body. Despite Pomona's strong financial aid (meeting 100% of demonstrated need with no loans), attracting high-achieving middle-income students remains challenging, as these students often receive competitive merit-based aid from other institutions.
- Alumni Engagement in Admissions: Admissions is exploring ways to engage alumni beyond interviews, including encouraging alumni to generate applications from potential students. One idea Trey presented (and is being considered) is offering an alumni admissions volunteer fee waiver, allowing alumni to provide two application fee waivers to prospective students they believe are a strong fit for Pomona.
- Annual Fund: Monika Moore ’03 shared that the Annual Fund Report will be shared digitally with more discussion during the upcoming Development Committee call.
- Advancement Communications and Events: Kristen McCabe Romero shared updates on communication strategies and engagement efforts, with the focus on sharing impactful stories of alumni making positive changes, either locally or globally. Kristen encourages alumni to reach out with ideas, suggestions, and stories. She may also reach out to alumni for specific stories as the year progresses. Key points Kristen discussed:
- Pulse Survey: Alumni are encouraged to help share the findings of the pulse survey within the community.
- Storytelling Priority: Advancement Communications seeks impactful alumni stories (especially about Oldenborg) to showcase across multiple channels (print, video, social media, etc.).
- Global Engagement: Highlighting stories related to the new Center for Global Engagement and expanded global learning opportunities.
- Career Development Office: Kerry Martin shared that the CDO is focused on providing both programmatic and personalized support to alumni, particularly those in the 0-5 years post-graduation group, in the following areas:
- Alumni Impact: Alumni play a key role in supporting students through networking, Smart Start, industry tracks, internships, and sharing expertise. Storytelling is crucial for the Career Development Office (CDO).
- Supporting Recent Graduates: The CDO is prioritizing support for recent graduates, especially the last two classes impacted by COVID-19 and the uncertain economy.
- Alumni Appointments: Between July 2023 and June 2024, the CDO had 324 alumni appointments, with 277 from alumni who graduated in the last 5 years.
Committee Breakouts – Due to time constraints, this agenda item has been moved to the Executive Cabinet Meeting.
Share insights as to why you were interested in serving on your respective committee
Development Committee Nina Zhou ’19
Engagement Committee Joshua Rodriguez ’13
Regional Chapters Committee Stuart Friedel ’08/Emily Zheng ’19
New Business & Action Items: Monika Moore ’03 shared with the board upcoming engagement opportunities at the following events:
- LA-local alumni at Orientation on 8/17: Move-In Day: Next Saturday is move-in day for the first-year class. Local alumni are invited to volunteer and help welcome families. The structure differs from last year, as students will go directly to their residence halls.
- Alumni Awards set to open 9/1
- PCAAB Retreat on 10/18-10/19: The retreat is scheduled for October 18-19. Travel and hotel expenses are covered, and alumni must RSVP and coordinate their travel arrangements with Pritina.
Adjournment: Having no further business being brought to the Board, the President Andrea Venezia ’91 adjourned the meeting at 1:04pm.
Next Alumni Board Meeting: Saturday, October 19th, 2024 at 9:00am PT
Key Dates: 2024 - 25
7/27/24 New Member Onboarding
8/10/24 Alumni Board Meeting #1
8/17/24 New Student / Family Orientation
10/18/24 Oct. Alumni Board Retreat: Senior Class/AB Mixer
10/19/24 Oct. Alumni Board Retreat: New Faculty Dinner (Faculty Award)
10/19/24 Alumni Board Meeting #2 (Hybrid)
11/1/24 Family Weekend 2024
12/7/24 Alumni Board Meeting #3
3/15/25 Alumni Board Meeting #4
5/1 – 5/4/25 Alumni Weekend 2025
5/4/25 Alumni Board Meeting #5
6/21/25 Alumni Board Meeting #6