Board Notes

The spring meeting of the William & Mary Alumni Association (WMAA) Board of Directors was held at the Kimpton Allegro Hotel in Chicago, May 31 to June 1, 2018.

The full board convened May 31 and began with an introduction of new members and approval of consent agenda items, followed by a meeting overview by the president.

The executive director briefed the board on recent activities and events, notably, the progress of the Society of 1918, Legacy Weekend, Traditions Weekend, Commencement Weekend, the Alumni House expansion groundbreaking, plans for the W&M Women’s Weekend, plans for the W&M Weekend in Chicago and she reported on metrics reflecting the growth in alumni engagement from the beginning of the campaign through FY17.

Members then reviewed nominations and approved the Douglas N. Morton ’62 Alumni Service awards for the following alumni:

• Latoya Asia J.D. ’09
• Paul Brockwell ’07
• Kathryn Floyd ’05
• Brian Focarino ’11, J. D. ’15
• Taylor “Monty” Mason ’89
• Emily Gerdelman Ridjanek ’07
• Joanna Ashworth ’84

The Board deliberated on nominations for the Alumni Medallion and approved bestowing that award to the following nominees:

• Craig W. Broderick ’81, P ’16
• Nancy Burgess Gofus ’75
• Cynthia Casson Morton ’77
• Christopher B. Powers ’73, P ’15

Presentations and discussions were held covering an update on the Alumni House expansion project by Board and Building committee member Todd Norris ’86, P ’18, P ’20; W&M Women’s Weekend and Alumnae Initiatives progress by Director of Alumnae Initiatives Valerie Cushman; review of initiatives by the Olde Guarde by President-elect of the Olde Guarde Howard Busbee ’65, J.D. ’67, M.L.T. ’68, P ’90, P ’04; and updates on the W&M Weekend Chicago and planning for the W&M Weekend in 2020 by Cindy Jarboe ’77 and Kelly Holdcraft, senior director of Alumni Regional Engagement.

The Board Development, Communications and Regional Engagement committees conducted working lunches to discuss and perform committee tasks. They then reported out on those activities. In addition, the board heard updates on Young Guarde programming and the performance statistics from One Tribe One Day by Director of Alumni Signature Events Katie Lowe and Director of Volunteer Management Sue Warner ’64. Vice President for University Advancement Matthew Lambert presented a campaign update to the board. President W. Taylor Reveley, III LL.D. ’18, HON ’18 met with the board and shared farewell thoughts about their work and importance to the university. He was recognized by the board with a resolution acknowledging his contributions and presented with a farewell gift.

On the final day of meetings, the board received an update on Alumni Engagement and Alumni Association Board fundraising efforts and progress by the Senior Associate Director of Development for the Alumni Association Richard Long M.Ed. ’18, followed by presentation of financial information and analyses by Treasurer Scott Kelsey ’06, M.Acc. ’07 and John Cole Scott ’00. Key among these presentations were a review of signature event price subsidizations by the WMAA and a review of a three-year pro forma budget covering the period that the Alumni House is closed for expansion.

From the Directors

Other significant discussion and decisions were made on the following actions:

• Approved a Faculty/Staff Service Award for Sandra Scott, University Parking Services.
• Agreed to undertake a study of parking solutions and funding models for the Alumni House.
• Approved a motion to hold the next W&M Weekend in San Francisco, on or about September 5, 2020, in conjunction with the W&M vs. Stanford football game.
• Reviewed and approved a $1.3M operating budget for FY19.

The next regular meeting of the Board of Directors will be Sept. 19-21, 2018, in Williamsburg.