Parents. Children. Activists. Leaders. Professionals. Pickleball stars. Our many identities guide, enrich and, in many ways, define our life journeys. In our famously busy lives, why do the words “Weatherhead alumni” matter so much for so many of us?
It starts with a comparatively little thing—a mind-blowing classroom insight. Meeting future lifelong friends on a trek to a new city. A small group dinner with a favorite professor. An alumna CEO talk that sparks new possibilities. Prepping for the big job interview at the career center. First, they are just one-offs in the chaos of a young person’s life. But slowly, little by little, these experiences begin to weave into something magical—a personal success network.
It works because in a world struggling with support networks, it nurtures. A coach helps us discover a new perspective. A classmate shares a key contact or a business opportunity. A former professor’s insight catalyzes a new venture. A reunion with old friends reminds us that we were once both naïve and intimidated by the great big world, but somehow figured it out—and can do so again.
It works because in a world that’s often transactional and fleeting, it’s lifelong and enduring. How many of us have had the dreaded experience of a networking event where it’s clear you are only as useful to your conversation partner as the immediate business opportunity you can provide, to be immediately forgotten once it passes? At Weatherhead, you are family for life—which lets it, almost uniquely in this day and age, span our personal and professional worlds at once. Which means besides professional opportunities (and those are aplenty!), it gives us a chance to serve as coaches, thought partners, and connectors—but also be on the receiving end of advice and connections—for life.
But most of all, it works because it is a community of trust in a world that often lacks it. It’s formed in our shared experiences in classrooms, treks and neighborhood watering holes. It is reinforced by Weatherhead’s culture of unpretentious excellence, so rare in a world that often forces us to choose between those two words. And it’s sustained by the bonds between us.
This is why a vibrant alumni community like ours has a power many “social networks” that seem to proliferate daily in our digital age can only aspire to. And with your help, it can grow even stronger.
So come join us at the next alumni event nearby. Plan a foliage trip to Cleveland in mid-October and relive the campus in all its fall glory during Homecoming weekend. Join a favorite professor for a webinar on the burning questions they are currently exploring. Chat with a student intrigued by a career in your field. Or simply reconnect with a classmate to say hello.
Thank you for being a part of the Weatherhead family. Wishing you a great rest of the year,
Co-Deans
JB and Andrew
Article Date
August 28, 2023
