Alumni?

[Epeeduelist84]

Hi all!

Tom, please forgive me for this in advance, but I just received at my home in sunny southern California the 'Alumnus Chronicle' published by the University. In it I noticed the sections 'Club News' and 'Reunion News'. These seems like a great resource for both drawing in some alumni by advertising some kind of Debate society alumni banquet (do we do this already???), or even just the Parliamentary. Anyway, it also provides many many names of alumni. Sounds like it might be worth trying to find a copy somewhere.

Good luck with what I'm sure will be a wonderful year!

-Aaron

[Jessica]

Aaron,

In regards to your alumni find - and thanks for the heads-up...

Here's the deal with the Alum letter as it has been explained to me by numerous people in the Union:

Right. The University will not release the names and addresses of alum because of the Freedom of Information Act. We've tried to get these names and addresses before, but they won't let us (this makes sense in a bit of a twisted way, anyone curious can email me for a more detailed explanation).

What we CAN do is start accumulating our own alum list now. (This is what we started doing at the final debates last year.) All of the names and addresses we've collected thus far will be receiving the Debating Society Alum newsletter in the next month. (Isn't a 10-person editorial process thorough?)

What I will ask you is this, was there an events calendar in the letter? That's a place where we have a better shot at advertising.

Finally, I would refer you to our Serjent-at-Arms, Mr. Tom Cahn, and ask you to email him to join the Friends of the Union Debating Society.

[exnihilo]

All of this was discussed before the site went down.

The Alumnus Chronicle is a once a year publication and is not for advertising events as such - unless you want to hold a specific Debating Society reunion. On the other hand, anyone can write an article for the Chronicle which could easily contain a link to the Society's web page (though I'd have thought a number of people likely to attend might be amused at being offered help on speaking).

Alternatively, go back through the minutes (talk to older members and recent graduates even) and compile a list of names, present them to the Alumnus Office with letters and envelopes and they will send the letters out quite happily. It involves a little bit more work, but things so often do.

[Mr Comedy]

I will look forward to recieving my alumni letter. Additionally, is there going to be an alumni debate? If so a Friday debate would be ideal as it is a damned nuisance to get to St Andrews from the Metrop., or indeed, anywhere civilised.

[hr]

"I am in no way interested in immortality, but only in the taste of tea. " -Lu Tung