2016–2017 CALVIN ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

FIRST ROW (from left):
Laura Ostrander Caprara ’92 (Grand Rapids, Mich.), Gene Miyamoto ’77 (Holland, Mich.), Cheryl Hubers Ten Brink ’81 (Kalamazoo, Mich.), Dare Odumosu (Philadelphia, Pa.), Cathy Van Zeelt Van Donselaar ’88 (Centennial, Colo.), Sierra Yazzie Asamoa-Tutu ’06 (Saint Paul, Minn.), Brianna Sas-Perez ’11 (Milwaukee, Wis.)

SECOND ROW (from left):
Valerie Stegink Sterk ’83 (Santa Clara, Calif.), Twana Graves Davis ’93 (Katy, Texas), Rosanne Lopers-Sweetman ’77 (Toronto, Ont.), Jeff Pyun ’93 (Clarksville, Tenn.), Jonathan Hirte ’08 (Washington, D.C.), Michael Van Denend ’78 (executive director), Lisa Kuyers Zylstra ’80 (Lombard, Ill.), Christine Jacobs Mouw ’88 (N. Little Rock, Ark.)

THIRD ROW (from left):
Jim Jenkins ’88 (Seattle, Wash.), David Tannor ’06 (Grand Rapids, Mich.), Nathan Plantinga ’94 (Grand Rapids, Mich.), Tim Katt ’09 (New York, N.Y.), Casey Kuperus ’97 (Grand Rapids, Mich.), David Vellenga ’60 (Tucson, Ariz.) Not pictured: Bruce Buursma ’73 (Grand Haven, Mich.)

The Calvin Alumni Association board met in September to begin its work for the year.

President Dare Odumosu ’05 (Philadelphia, Pa.) introduced the board members to working groups named the “Three R’s”—recommend, recruitment and retention—all enrollment-related initiatives aimed at rallying alumni to assist in these critical areas.

Board members listened to presentations in plenary sessions and then divided into three working groups. They met with college staff to plan specifi c alumni-driven activity that will boost the enrollment effort this year.

“Enrollment really is the top priority, for the college and the association,” said Odumosu. “We believe alumni can help the college be successful this recruitment season.”

New board member Jim Jenkins ’88 (Seattle, Wash.) said, “The college presentations on recruitment and retention were very impressive. I appreciate the good work of the staff and the specific tactics that come from carefully acquired data.”

In addition to the Three R’s, the board has other working groups centered on intercultural support, connections (publications and regional programs), and faculty engagement.

David Vellenga ’60 (Tucson, Ariz.) reported that there are plans to support another “Developing Christian Perspectives” alumni-faculty study team for 2017–18 on the topic of “Intercultural Competency.”

The board will be looking for six faculty members and six alumni with expertise in this topic to agree to be a part of the team, starting in September 2017. Those interested can email alumni@calvin.edu.

The board also heard an update from career center director TaRita Johnson on the forthcoming Life-Work program and toured the new Calvin Rehabilitation Services Center to get caught up on the speech pathology and audiology major and community outreach.

Another highlight for the board was hosting the alumni award recipients for the year.

Many board members commented on the inspiration of hearing the stories of the honorees.

Board member Nathan Plantinga ’94 noted, “The width of Calvin’s global reach is breathtaking.”