March 19, 2020

Dear Alumni and Alumnae,

Let me begin with my sincere hope that this note finds you and those around you healthy and safe. President Jacobsen has been focused on the evolving impact on our students’ education and residential experience which has changed enormously in just one week. As we continue to navigate the uncertainty in this unprecedented time, you will undoubtedly continue to hear messages from her and other institutional voices. Please visit the Colleges’ COVID-19 webpage to learn more about our response and actions to date.

Our office has continued to make daily adjustments to our plan of work. We have postponed all regional events and we are working in earnest to deliver virtual content over the next few months that you might find interesting. We will be sending a separate communication in the coming week of some of these opportunities and hope you will participate.

I am writing today with the unfortunate news that we are postponing this year’s reunion weekend. Due to the current situation impacting all of us it seemed the prudent decision. I suspect this does not come as a surprise but as you can imagine, we have been fielding calls from alums all over the country looking for clarity on our plan. At this point we felt the most practical measure was to join this year’s reunion classes ending in 0s and 5s with next year’s classes ending with 1s and 6s in June of 2021.

If you have attended a reunion in the past you can readily understand all of the work that goes into putting the weekend together as well as all of the logistical challenges and expenses that many of our visitors incur to be in Geneva for the long weekend. The joining of these two sets of reunion cycles will certainly provide for an incredible weekend in Geneva. Make sure you reach out to those classmates that you otherwise would not have seen and encourage them today!

My colleagues and I would like to applaud the reunion volunteers that have continued to pour countless hours into fundraising and reconnecting with their classmates. The successes of our reunions are only that because of all of you who engage in the process.

As the weeks unfold Chevanne DeVaney ’95, P’21, P’23, our Director of Alumni and Alumnae Relations, will continue to be in touch with volunteers and detail how we move forward in this new plan.

As always, please do not hesitate to reach out if we can answer any of your questions or if you have concerns or suggestions.

Most sincerely,

Bob O’Connor P’22
Vice President for Advancement