Maintaining relationships between past, present and future students at Marywood University would not be easy without the Student Alumni Association (SAA).

Overseen by the Office of Alumni Engagement, not only does this student-run organization connect current students with alumni through mock interviews and professional development workshops, but it also prepares current students to fulfill alumni responsibilities and leadership roles.

“I feel like a lot of it, at least on the student side, being able to connect with alumni gives them a lot of insight that they don’t really get from their teachers or sometimes it’s things that they don’t really make the connection with at first,” said Alice Jones, president of the Student Alumni Association.

Jones recently spoke with former Dean of the College of Professional Studies James Sullivan where he revealed that so many architecture students are unaware of the multitude of careers they can pursue with an architecture degree.

“He was saying that you can do video game design or movies or stuff like that and a lot of them didn’t even realize that was an option,” said Jones.

“And I feel like a lot of the time, especially in college, everybody’s confused and you’re trying to figure out what you want to do… but being able to talk to someone that is working and they know more and they have more experience can help you get on the path that you really are going to enjoy,” said Jones.

Oftentimes, current students fall unaware of the extent alumni give back to their alma mater.

“Alumni provide financial support for the institution as evidenced by Empower, the recent $30 million Empower campaign that supported facility improvements, scholarships and the student experience,” said Megan Galko, director of alumni engagement and faculty advisor to the Student Alumni Association.

There is not an area on this campus that has not been positively impacted by the generosity of our alumni,” said Galko.

The Office of Alumni Engagement and the Student Alumni Association held the first session of their 2024-25 Student Professional Development Series on Oct. 2. These events offer both networking opportunities between current students and alumni, as well as some insight into the transition between college and the workforce.

SAA will host a Spooky Trivia and Pumpkin Decorating night on Friday, Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. in Swartz B.

For more information regarding biweekly meetings, events and volunteer opportunities, follow SAA on Instagram or reach out to [email protected].

Contact the writer: [email protected]