Story written by Laurel Baltic, Assistant Director of Annual Giving, Communications & Outreach 

 

With each passing year, the network of alumni who call Colorado State University their alma mater grows. New graduates cross the dais to receive their degrees, new Ph.D. recipients don their hoods, and our community expands ever outward.

Keeping over 250,000 living alumni connected – to each other and to the University – is no small feat. Members of the Alumni Association are the backbone of this effort, making it possible for the Alumni Association team to meet Rams where they are. As our staff and volunteers reflect back on the successes and challenges of 2022, building links between alumni across counties, state-lines, and even oceans, is something we’re especially proud of.

All told, Alumni Association staff traveled to 20 Colorado cities in 16 counties last year. From Delta to Durango and from Sterling to Steamboat, Rams across the state gathered to share in the energy of the Green and Gold together. Outside of Colorado, Alumni Association representatives logged over 22,000 miles, hosting rallies, football game day tailgates, and Ram Meetups that spanned coast-to-coast.

At its core, the Alumni Association mission is about keeping Rams connected, both to one another and to the University. Travelling across the state and country is more than about pins on a map: It’s that mission made real by alumni and members who build community wherever they are.

“The best part of my job is the opportunity I have to connect with proud Rams where they live,” Lisa Hansen (B.A., ‘02), managing director of alumni engagement, said. “The sense of belonging that our alumni and members create with and for each other, even when they’re thousands of miles from campus, reminds me why this work matters.”

In 2022, the Alumni Association hosted 187 events across the country, including 30 Ram Meetups in cities as far-flung as Seattle, Wash., and Tucson, Ariz.,.  Another highlight was hosting a tailgate in the shadow of the legendary Big House ahead of CSU Rams Football’s meeting with the University of Michigan Wolverines last fall.

There is a special kind of magic in the room where Rams gather. Alumnus and Life Member Darrell Blair (B.A., ‘97) shared his favorite Alumni Association memory. “[It was] the first time I met up with fellow Rams in another state outside of Colorado,” Blair said. “In my case, it was for a Rams at the Cubs event in Chicago where I met several Rams and got the chance to connect with the head football coach at the time. It really soothed my soul to see so many fellow Rams.”

In 2022, 20,518 of those fellow Rams joined events, representing 20,518 stories of connection like Darrell’s. Twenty-eight percent  of these attendees were active members, whose support for the Alumni Association directly impacts the successes celebrated this past year. That percentage also underscores their outsized impact: Though members don’t represent the majority of participants, they make it possible for events and resources to be accessible to and inclusive of everyone who calls themselves a Ram.

This community is a generous one, and that dedication to paying it forward is the beating heart of what we mean when we say Ram Pride. Alumni choose to give across the University at impressive rates, and student success is especially important to those who give through the Alumni Association. Last year, alumni contributions provided $48,500 in Alumni Association scholarship funding to 31 recipients who are now attending CSU. The ever-expanding circle of this dedicated community continues to the next generation.

It’s clear the main character in this story are members of the Alumni Association. Last year, 19,148 members affirmed their commitment to the success of CSU and its alums through their membership support. The Alumni Association works to provide resources, benefits and opportunities to connect to any alum, regardless of the season of life or the city they call home.

The impacts of 2022 deserve to be celebrated, but only because of those proud members who continue to give back.

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When you join the Colorado State University Alumni Association, you become part of something bigger – a global community of green and gold that keeps alumni connected to the University and each other. Members make an impact on current students and future Rams through volunteerism and donations; providing support for alumni programming, outreach, and nationwide engagement; and preserving time-honored traditions that bind us together as Rams. You can make a difference too, and gain access to benefits such as exclusive invites, bookstore savings, career services, and more. Become a member today!