Greetings alumni and friends. Here we are a month into the year 2020. Did you have a good January and follow through with some of your goals and/or resolutions? I know for me personally it took a few weeks to write ’20 on my dates instead of ’19. Campus was quiet for the first week while the students and some faculty and staff were away for break. When classes started on January 6 it felt busy, full and boisterous- it was great having everyone back and things back to normal. January was a busy month aside from welcoming students, faculty and staff back to campus. We hosted a few events and held the first alumni board meeting of the year. Check out the event recaps below and be sure to check out what’s coming up this month and beyond. 

WOU Alumni Board of Directors Winter Meeting 

On Saturday, January 4 the WOU Alumni Board of Directors met on campus for their first meeting of 2020. Topics of discussion included upcoming events, past events, committee reports, goals and outreach strategies. We also welcomed a new member to the board, CM Hall ’00! This year we will continue to host the monthly After Hours events on the second Tuesday of each month in various locations and we will also focus on outreach and engagement with alumni in and beyond our communities. It’s going to be a great year, be sure to check out a local After Hours in your neighborhood! 

**Interested in hosting an After Hours event? Reach out to Emily at lafone@wou.edu and we’d love to share the process with you! We’re always looking for new locations and new, fun hosts. We will hook you up with swag and instructions. 

Alumni Appreciation Night at WOU Basketball

It was a rainy and wet evening in Monmouth on January 23, as many January days are. Starting at 4:45 p.m. fans gathered in New PE for the women’s game which tipped off at 5:15 p.m. and the crowd grew as the men’s game drew near for a 7:30 tip-off. WOU Alumni Relations was onsite handing out free tickets, t-shirts, swag and connecting with alums who attended the games for “Alumni Appreciation Night at WOU Basketball.” Overall there were 36 alumni who attended either the men’s, women’s or both team’s games that evening and it was fun seeing new and familiar faces. Both teams unfortunately lost that evening but both games were played hard and came down to the last few minutes of the game. 

Family Weekend

WOU hosted it’s annual Family weekend on January 24 – 26. More than 180 families registered for the weekend’s activities and it was fun seeing all of the families around campus and in the community. On The evening of January 24 WOU Alumni Relations hosted a dessert bar at the Family Weekend trivia show in the Pacific Room. We had a table and offered free swag items to both family members and students and had a chance to talk with parents. It was a fun evening and great seeing the smiles, laughs and hearing stories from families. 

Men’s Basketball Alumni Night 

On Saturday, January 25, WOU Alum and former Alumni Award of Excellence winner Dr. Lance Marr ’90 worked with WOU athletics to host the 9th annual Men’s Basketball Alumni Night. Lance has worked on this evening for many years and does w wonderful job getting alumni to come back and contribute to the Bradshaw basketball Scholarship. We are thankful for Lance and all of his hard work. This year the event raised just over $91,000 which will all be used for men’s basketball scholarships and operations. Thank you to those who contribute and for your continuous support to WOU athletics.