Helping children in Uganda. And singing the Fight Song.
Roommates. Midterms. Basketball games. Studies abroad. Saturday-night parties. Housing. Internships. Meal points. Immersion trips. Senior Ball. Finals. Jobs.
Bronco students have a lot on their minds as they navigate their four years of undergraduate studies. One thing they’re probably not thinking about is how great their lifelong connection will be with SCU once they graduate. But we’re out to change that!
The Alumni Association currently engages students in a variety of ways including Freshman Orientation, Summer Send-offs, the Life After Santa Clara series, and Graduation Picnic. But to continue helping students truly understand their connection to our Alumni Family, we decided to get creative.
Alumni Association Service Award
After a generous lead gift from a member of our Board of Directors, the Alumni Association Service Award was established. The award will be presented annually and provides financial support to a graduating Bronco going directly into a service program or project. Our inaugural recipient, Megan Kollar ’10, received $2,000 to help with her work as a teacher at a school in rural Uganda dedicated to serving children affected by the AIDS tragedy.
Kollar used the money to purchase school supplies; create, fund, and produce a school-wide Creativity Day; pay for student doctor appointments; and buy clothes and food for the Nazareth Children’s Home Orphanage. The generosity of our alumni community made a big impact on Kollar and the community she served. As she graciously shared, “I’m so grateful for this gift from alumni. I have wonderfully impressive shoes to fill now, being an SCU alumni myself.”
Bronco Idol
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| Acclaim your fame: Bronco Idol Photo by Charles Barry. |
With the goal of instilling a strong sense of Bronco history and tradition in our students, the Alumni Association sponsored the first ever Bronco Idol during Spirit Week in January. Undergraduates were enticed with a $500 gift card to perform their best rendition of the Santa Clara Fight Song. Four alumni panelists (from the classes of 1960, 1969, 1986, and 2008) judged the competition based on word accuracy, creativity in dress and/or song, and Bronco Spirit. After a friendly competition and many rousing versions of “Fight for Santa Clara,” Jennifer Dyckman ’12 and Ryan Wells ’12 claimed the first-place prize. Given all the energy and enthusiasm around this year’s event, I look forward to Bronco Idol becoming a long-standing student-alumni tradition on campus.
What’s next?
With such full lives, it will take passion, commitment, and generosity on our part for students to truly embrace the notion of “Student for four years, Bronco for life.”
You can help by making a gift to the Alumni Association Service Award (or the student scholarship of your choice), listing internships on BroncoLink, posting jobs on inCircle and LinkedIn, signing up for the Alumni Shadowing Program, granting informational interviews, and answering those e-mails or phone calls when a student reaches out for help.
And learn the Fight Song. You never know when Bronco Idol may come calling!
Go Broncos!