Annual Report

Annual Report for July 1, 2011-June 30, 2012

Dear Members:

I have truly enjoyed my five years of directorship on the ISU Alumni Association Board of Directors, and serving this past year as chair was an awesome experience. Be assured, this is a working board, and you are really put to work as chair. But it is extremely rewarding to know that you are making a difference in the life of your alma mater, its alumni association, and the lives of so many Iowa Staters.

I have to say a special thank you to my colleagues and peers who served as chair before me. Thanks for leaving great notes and setting wonderful examples. I also need to thank Jeff Johnson and his staff. There is no harder working and more supportive group to have in your corner as a volunteer. Professional, proactive, energetic, and passionate are just a few adjectives to describe this wonderful team of Iowa State ambassadors. I finally want to thank my wife, Barb, and my children for supporting me during this year of service to my beloved alma mater.

If you have ever thought about volunteering or increasing your involvement with Iowa State, put “serving on the alumni board” on your list. While only four spots come open every year on this diverse and geographically inclusive board, I encourage you to put your name in the running and be patient. On average, more than 50 names are reviewed annually for these four spots.

I provided the following quote (author unknown, but believed to be an African proverb) to Jeff to frame the work I felt the board needed to accomplish this past year: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” This is truly the culture of our Alumni Association. It is inclusive. It is a team. It works to serve all alumni, students, and friends of the Iowa State family.

It wishes for all Iowa Staters to be members and be visibly proud of this university. And this Association also expects alumni to call on it and the university. In other words, service to this Association is a two-way street, and we are moving all the time.

The following goals were set and accomplished this past year:

Ratified a solid statement and practice of individual board members giving financially to the work of the Association.
Successfully negotiated a new seven-year $1.9 million guarantee bank card program with Bank of America. (And I am happy to report that more than 12,000 individuals are currently carrying the ISU credit card bearing the I-State/Cy/ISUAA logos! Thanks, folks.)
Presented a resolution on behalf of the Association board, staff, and members honoring President Greg Geoffroy and his wife, Kathy, for their 10-plus years of service to Iowa State University.
Recommended two alumni representatives to the Iowa Board of Regents for appointment to the search committee that named President Steven Leath as our 15th university leader.
Completed and began implementing the new ISUAA five-year strategic plan.
Established and began to fund deferred maintenance for the Alumni Center.
Provided firm support to Dr. Leath and his wife, Janet, during their transition to the university.

I hope you all know that we appreciate your membership, your involvement, and your support.

Sincerely,
Craig Foss, chair
ISUAA Board of Directors

2011-2012 Board of Directors

Front row: Jeffery W. Johnson (ISU Alumni Association president, CEO, and publisher; Ames, Iowa), ex-officio/non-
voting; Lora Talbot (Belmond, Iowa), non-alumni representative; Melea Reicks Licht (’00 public service & admin in ag; M.S. ’05; Roland, Iowa), ISU Alumni Relations Council representative; Tahira Hira (Ames, Iowa), ISU president’s designee; Carlie C. Tartakov (’95 Ph.D. educational leadership and policy studies; Amherst, Mass.); Natasha Thomas (’89 marketing; Scottdale, Ga.), vice chair of records; Craig R. Foss (’71 industrial engineering; Fairfield, Iowa), chair. Second row: Richard Degner (’72 agricultural education, M.S. ’77; Ankeny, Iowa); Warren R. Madden (’61 industrial engineering; Ames, Iowa), treasurer; ex-officio/voting; Joy Wiegman Boruff (’76 home economics journalism; Moline, Ill.); Thea “Ted” Oberlander (’77 industrial administration/accounting; Des Moines, Iowa); Billi Hunt (’93 housing; Urbandale, Iowa); James DeLano (’87 DVM veterinary medicine; San Ramon, Calif.) Third row: Barbara D. Correll (’96 exercise science; Chicago, Ill.); Chris DeZorzi (senior, kinesiology/health; West Des Moines, Iowa), Student Alumni Leadership Council representative; Timothy C. Becker (’94 construction engineering; Ames, Iowa); Melanie J. Reichenberger (’00 industrial engineering; Shorewood, Wis.); Kay Kretschmar Runge (’69 history education; Davenport, Iowa); Michelle Miller (’98 computer science; Lenexa, Kan.); Alan E. Krysan (’87 ag business; Lakeville, Minn.); Paul Ruby (’85 HRIM; Geneva, Ill.) Back row: Matthew M. Craft (’00 political science; La Porte City, Iowa); David Alan VanHorn (’90 M.S. aerospace engineering; Kingwood, Texas), vice chair of finance; Ronald J. Hallenbeck (’71 finance; Ames, Iowa), immediate past chair; Duane A. Halverson (’67 ag business; M.S. ’69; New Brighton, Minn.); Scott M. Stanzel (’95 journalism and mass communication; Seattle, Wash.), chair-elect. Not pictured: Rebecca Stadlman (’74 journalism/mass communication; Ankeny, Iowa).

ISU Alumni Center gardens are dedicated

The Alumni Center gardens were dedicated at a ceremony held during Homecoming weekend, Oct. 22, 2011. Like so many other projects at Iowa State University, landscaping for the ISU Alumni Center was a team effort. Donors, landscapers, project managers, and Alumni Association staff worked together to design a landscape that would complement the building and its surroundings and also bring a feeling of central campus to the site. A special “thank you” to Country Landscapes, Inc., of Ames for their support and expertise.

Garden spaces include: the Slater West Entry Lawn and Gardens, the West Lawn and Alumni Gardens, the Slater Alma Mater Monument Garden and North Prairie, the Hopson Memorial Garden and Patio, the Eggerling Iowa State University Traditions Garden, the Nelson Family East Prairie Garden, and the Tubbs Cyclone Garden.

Your Lifetime Link

The “Your Lifetime Link” membership campaign is underway with a new look and a new focus. The campaign’s primary goals are:

To provide high-quality programs and services
To serve as the lifetime link to/from ISU
To nurture loyalty, pride, and tradition

During the course of this campaign we will also grow membership to 60,000 paid members, increase annual member retention rates to 86 percent, and increase our membership among other key constituent groups.