University of Virginia Library

The Alumni Association

Very soon now the Alumni Association of
the University of Virginia will be contacting
all degree applicants asking that they purchase
a life membership in the Association. Last
spring a similar effort was made and the
results were the worst in many years. For
many students it seemed, during the events of
last May, as if the alumni of the University
had lost faith in this institution. Students felt
that they had done the right thing by
protesting the invasion of Cambodia and they
responded to the alumni criticism by not
joining the Alumni Association.

A great deal has happened since that time.
The campuses in the state have been quiet and
the threat of fiscal bankruptcy has replaced
student unrest as the major worry of
university administrators.

And the Alumni Association has made a
real effort this year to become attuned to
student concerns. Gilbert J. Sullivan, Director
of Alumni Activities, has met frequently with
student groups this year to hear their
complaints and explain the Alumni
Association to them. He has sent students to a
dozen alumni chapters to speak. The Board of
Managers of the Alumni Association has met
with members of the Student Council and one
result of these meetings was a resolution by
the Board asking each of its chapters to avoid
the use of facilities for its meetings which are
segregated.

Last spring and summer it seemed as if the
local chapter of the Alumni Association was
going to prohibit graduates of the University
who were still in school from joining. But due
to the efforts of Lockwood Frizzel and other
alumni all graduates of the University will be
able to join the local chapter if they so desire.

But perhaps the biggest change to occur in
the Alumni Association this year was the
election of William P. Dickson, Jr. of Norfolk
to the Presidency of that group. It is no secret
that his predecessor in that office was not
overly fond of the current generation of
students. But ever since the Mountain Lake
Conference, when students met the new
President of the Association, we have been
impressed with the interest Mr. Dickson has
shown in the views and attitudes of future
alumni.

Last year at this time most students
viewed the alumni as a group of geriatrics who
lost touch with reality some decades ago. The
alumni, on the other hand, seemed to think
that students were monsters of some sort.
One of the greatest things the Alumni
Association has done this year is to get these
two groups together where each discovered
that the other side was not all that bad, and
indeed, often made some sense.

Students had many misconceptions about
the Alumni Association. It was thought that
the organization controlled a huge
endowment and could right many of the
problems of the University with their large
bank account if they so desired. In reality,
most of the endowment of this University, a
not inconsiderable amount, is controlled by
the school, not the Alumni Association —
which has assets of little more than a million
dollars. But the activities of that organization
produce a great deal of revenue which goes to
the University. In this next year, the Alumni
will have to lobby in Richmond for adequate
funding for the University's programs since
Governor Holton has decreed that state
agencies are not to lobby in Richmond.

It costs $200 to become a life member of
the Alumni Association. There are several
possible plans to make payment of the
contribution over a 10-year period as easy as
possible for the student. The graduate may
pay $5 after his first year of earning, $10
after his second and third years and $25
thereafter for the next seven years.
Prospective law students may defer payment
until after graduation from law school. In
addition, any alumni employed for low wages,
such as servicemen or interns, may defer their
payment until their earning power increases
sufficiently.

About the only real tangible result a
student will receive is a subscription to the
Alumni News. More important is the
knowledge that you are helping the University
in an organized way. Both the Student
Council and the Class Officers have urged
June graduates to purchase a life membership.
We join in urging students to join an
organization which has responded so rapidly
to students who only a year ago would have
been happy to see the Alumni Association
fold.