Saturday, February 28, 2004.

What kind of a day was it?

A day like all days, filled with those events that alter and illuminate our times . . . are You Are There!

Well, OK.  Maybe we're being just a bit melodramatic in putting our Alumni Association Leadership Training Workshop on a par with Walter Cronkite's mid-1950's You Are There historical reenactments.  But to the Penn State faithful who made their way to the Homewood Suites near Fairborn, it was indeed a day to be remembered.  Our Dayton Chapter hosted the workshop and we were privileged to have Alumni Association Regional Directors Cheryl Stringer and Dana Allen as our guests for the day.  Area Penn Staters who attended included Karen Balda and Stephanie Wagner, Cincinnati Chapter; Chris Scott, Akron-Canton Chapter; Bob Remy, Central Ohio Chapter; and, Vic Folwarczny, John Glaser, Randy Galas, Edie Kreider, Jim Valeri, Dave Romanko, and Bob Gehman of the Dayton Chapter.

Vic Folwarczny (Dayton Chapter President), Dana Allen (Alumni Association Regional Director), Cheryl Stringer (Alumni Association Regional Director), and John Glaser (Dayton Chapter Vice President) pose for this photo op shortly after arriving at the Homewood Suites for the workshop.

The formalities kicked off at 10 o'clock with introductory and welcoming remarks by Cheryl Stringer.  To help everyone get acquainted and feel more at ease with each other, Dana Allen passed out sheets of paper with "smiley" faces on them representing different moods.  She then asked each of us to choose which of the faces best represented our feelings that morning.  The moods ranged from Karen Balda being happy . . . to Stephanie Wagner exhibiting mixed feelings of curiosity and bashfulness . . . to Vic Folwarczny being excited . . . to John Glaser's feeling of relief — that all of his meticulous planning for the event had come together so successfully.  Dana confided to all that her predominant feeling was that of being confident . . . that we'll be glad we gave up four or five hours to hear some great information.

Karen Balda, Stephanie Wagner, Jim Valeri, John Glaser, and Dana Allen (left to right) take a break during the workshop for refreshments and to get better acquainted.

Dana then spoke on the Alumni Association's Awards and Recognition Program.  Her basic theme was the need to change the internal mindset prevalent throughout alumni organizations; i.e. that AIGs, APGs, and chapters don't do enough to "toot their own horn" and take credit for all the activities they undertake and services they perform. 

She then asked for examples of what each chapter is doing in the way of activities and services.  As she got a steady stream of answers (e.g. service projects, annual spring banquet, football parties, college fairs, web sites) she recorded them on a large paper flip chart for all to see.  When each chapter's list was complete she told us that our chapters were already doing the things for which the Alumni Association makes formal awards.

To provide a historical perspective, Dana went on to describe how the Awards Program has evolved over time.  The previous overhaul of the program was conducted in 1997 and 1998.  But because our alumni organizations are doing things today that weren't being done then, the program has been restructured recently to acknowledge and recognize a broader sphere of activity.  

Throughout her discourse she emphasized that we rid ourselves of our reluctance to take credit for all the initiatives and activities we accomplish in supporting the university and its alumni.

In concluding her remarks about the Awards and Recognition Program, Dana cited and described several examples of award categories.  These included Communications, New/Innovative Event or Program, Membership, Service Projects, Fellowship and Networking, PRIDE (Penn State Regional Interests Developing Enthusiasm), Scholarship Fundraising, and maintaining a web site.  She noted there is no longer a National Service Week per se.  In its place is a more proactive approach toward community service which can be done anytime during the year.  Criteria for the Service Project Award are one outstanding project or consistent community service throughout the year.  

Workshop participants are comfortably ensconced in fashionable chairs as they enjoy a tonsil-titillating box lunch in the pleasant surroundings of the Homewood Suites lounge.

Cheryl Stringer then took the floor for the next workshop topic, Recruiting and Retaining Members.  She began by saying that emphasis first and foremost needs to be on retaining current members.  Directing her comments to chapter officers and board members, she alluded to the movie Field of Dreams by saying, "If YOU build it, they will come."

She believes the key to a successful and vibrant chapter is a committed group of members, and she challenged us to continually seek that goal.

Cheryl then offered up some ideas on how to achieve this objective.  She enjoined us to be inclusive — not exclusive — in appealing to our membership population.  Do we have a vision for our chapter?  Do we have goals we're working hard to achieve?  Are we striving for excellence in achieving those goals?

She also provided some specific ideas on ways to attract and retain people at the chapter level.  One very important aspect is communication, both spoken and written.  Newsletters and web sites can do much to disseminate information and create interest.  Perhaps we should consider posting local job openings.  Dana suggested we might be able to strengthen ties to the business community by "honoring" a local businessman or entrepreneur at a football party. 

Cheryl continued by emphasizing the spirit of volunteerism as a way to give back to people and the community.  She mentioned service projects, retirement homes, highway clean-up, Habitat for Humanity, and conservation projects as opportunities to help.  She also mentioned the possibility of working such projects with other local Big Ten alumni chapters. 

After lunch, Dana got our attention in a hurry by distributing each of four different board games (Sorry, Candy Land, Clue, and Trouble) to a representative from each chapter.  She said she uses these games as a corny — but effective — technique to stimulate thinking, express ideas, and discover insights about our chapter organizations.    

As you can plainly see, Chris Scott was given Sorry to expound upon.  Chris observed that, "We all hear 'Sorry' as an excuse for not getting things done, but we're trying to turn 'Sorrys' into positives."

Here we see Stephanie Wagner as she compares and contrasts Candy Land and the Cincinnati Chapter.  Stephanie said, "As in this game, some things are very doable and we can jump ahead by two.  But the swamp in this game represents areas where we may get stuck."

Bob Remy's luck of the draw was nothing but "trouble," but he was quite articulate in analyzing similarities and differences between the Central Ohio Chapter and the game of Trouble.  Bob said, "When playing this game, we can try to race ahead, but sometimes we're bumped back to reality.  However, I don't think my chapter is in trouble."

We can imagine what Vic is thinking at this point:  "What . . is . . a . .  puzzlement?"  But true to form, he was undaunted by Clue and observed, "We have our usual suspects of who, what, and where — doing some of the same things every year.  We must ask where is our vision?"

The next topic was Alumni Association Expectations and Benefits.  Dana spoke to the Group Expectations letter signed by the Alumni Association on June 6, 2003.  Apparently some affiliate groups viewed this letter as a heavy-handed approach to force compliance with a broad list of requirements — or face inactive status and ineligibility for services and support for failure to comply. 

Dana acknowledged the letter's tone may have been somewhat draconian, but she went to great lengths to clarify the Alumni Association's intent and dispel any lingering misgivings.  It is now clear that the motivation behind the expectations plan is simply to communicate, promote, and reward the excellence that many affiliate groups already demonstrate. 

Then Cheryl addressed the many benefits offered by the Alumni Association.  These include mailing allocations, special project requests, a web template and web services, outreach grants, the awards program, updated membership information, the availability of regional directors for consultation, insurance coverage for sponsored events, and the football lottery.

What's this?  Is Vic asking Cheryl to dance?  Has he handed her the final version of the Dayton Chapter Bylaws?  Or have they merely acquiesced to Bob Gehman's request for an impromptu photo?  Enquiring minds may never know.

Although this observer was unable to stay for the group discussion, it was apparent to him that a highly productive and beneficial exchange of timely and relevant information transpired throughout the day. 

The Dayton Chapter takes this opportunity to express its deep appreciation to Cheryl and Dana for traveling here to provide a comprehensive body of information, share their thoughts and ideas, and offer their ongoing support.  Many thanks to you both. 

We would also like to thank Karen Balda, Bob Remy, Chris Scott, and Stephanie Wagner for coming to Dayton and actively participating in the workshop.  And, of course, a great big THANKS goes to John Glaser for planning and coordinating this super event.  

In closing, we think Dana's feeling of confidence that we'd be glad we "gave up" four or five hours to attend the workshop was the understatement of the day.  And with deference to Walter Cronkite we ask, "What kind of a day was it?  A day like all days, filled with those events that alter and illuminate our times.  And WE were there!"