Origins | 1970s | 1980s | 1990s | 2000–09 | 2010–2019 | 2020-2029
2000: Committed to fully representing a very diverse constituency, 60,000 Alumni/ae voices, the Council took on a self-evaluation. It committed to exploring the College's technology strategy for the future. Instrumental in its support of the Trustees and Administration, it held a special meeting in New York on March 4, 2000 to respond to the Student Life Initiative report. Eight resolutions: student housing; alternative spaces and programming; graduate student body; coed fraternity and sorority organizations; unbiased reviews of senior society, undergraduate societies, academic affinity houses and programs; creation of new guidelines for alcohol and other drugs; and a charge to the Trustees to review and act on these areas of concern were passed by the majority of those attending the special meeting that action was pivotal for the Council, it had not only played an important representative role, but also one of leadership. The first of seven annual Trustee elections was held. The slate of Trustee candidates, from which Michael Chu was elected, (Michael Chu '68, Kevin Ross '77 and Maxwell Anderson'77) was unanimously approved.
2001: More Councilors began to take advantage of the electronic bulletin board Counciltalk as a means of internal communication. The Council continued to receive updates from the College regarding the implementation of various aspects of the Student Life Initiative. The Nominating Committee's three candidates for the election of one alumni trustee position were approved by the Council: Christine Burnley Bucklin '84, Charles Nearburg '72, and Benjamin Wilson '73. Bucklin was elected for the trustee position by the alumni body in the first election which offered on-line voting to alumni. The Council unanimously approved the Alumni Organization Committee's recommendation that the position of a class webmaster be added to the Class Officers Association. The Council approved the Communication Committee's resolution commending the staff of The Dartmouth for its extraordinary reporting to the Dartmouth community during the 2000-2001 academic year. The Council approved the two resolutions submitted by the College Relations Group. The first resolution was in response to two recent incidents at fraternities. It read that the Council "supports the administration's leadership role in affirming an inclusive Dartmouth community committed to fairness, respect, and openness, with no patience or tolerance for bigotry or demeaning behavior. Further, the Alumni Council supports the administration's imposition of disciplinary action for behavior contrary to this standard, including sexist, racist, or homophobic behavior."?The second resolution was part of an ongoing effort to improve the Alumni Trustee nominating and election process. It resolved that "the Alumni Council create a joint committee on Alumni Governance and Trustee Nominations in conjunction with the Association of Alumni." Its purpose will be to gather and compile information and recommendations on the relationship between the Alumni Council and the Association of Alumni, and the process by which Alumni Trustees are nominated.
2002: The Joint Ad Hoc Committee on Alumni Governance and Trustee Nominations met during the year and gathered input and feedback from alumni through numerous town meetings and electronic outreach. The goal is to report their findings to the Council next year. The Nominating Committee's three candidates for the election of one alumni trustee position were approved by the Council: Mark Harty '73, Chansoo "CJ" Joung '82,Tuck '87, and Jose Fernandez '77. Fernandez was elected for the trustee position by the alumni body. The voting participation rate was 23% which was the highest percentage in four years. The Council was informed by the College about various plans for expansion including the North Campus dormitory proposals that would increase student housing on campus. The ongoing relationship between the College and the Town of Hanover was discussed and how it pertains to various expansions, renovations, and acquisitions by the College within the town. The council unanimously approved a resolution supporting renovation of the Blunt Alumni Center into the core of alumni activity on campus. The Blunt Alumni Center would be the gathering place for alumni, providing meetings and business spaces, alumni education, and other alumni services pertinent to alumni activities...A new ad hoc committee was established to study alumni participation in its many ramifications. The following resolution was approved by the Council: "That the alumni council of Dartmouth here assembled does earnestly re-commit itself with dedication and enthusiasm to its principal officially designated task and responsibility to communicate with alumni frequently and faithfully so as to act as an effective two-way interface between the college and her alumni at large, assuming that both information and viewpoints are promptly and reliably exchanged." A new relationship among committee vice chairs was created, called the "vice net", to increase communication among the council committees.
2003: The Joint Ad Hoc Committee on Alumni Governance and Trustee Nominations presented their report to the Alumni Council at a joint session with the Association of Alumni in December. The committee entertained and discussed proposed amendments to their proposed constitution at the Alumni Council meeting in May. Separate votes will be conducted by the Alumni Council and the Association of Alumni in the fall, 2003 under current rules, and followed in 2004 with a vote by all alumni. The Council passed a resolution in response to the College's decision to eliminate the swimming and diving teams due to serious budget considerations. The resolution recommended an "ongoing dialogue" to resolve longer-term obstacles to the swimming program. The College ultimately decided to reinstate both teams. The Nominating Committee's three candidates for the election of one trustee position were approved by the Council: M. Elyse Benson Allan '79, Tuck '84, John J. Donahoe '82, and Ric Lewis '84. Donahoe was elected for the trustee position by the alumni body. The ad hoc committee on alumni participation made recommendations to increase alumni participation in the Dartmouth College Fund, the classes and the clubs. The Council voted to endorse the committee's three-part plan. The Council examined current mentoring programs on campus and created an ad hoc committee to investigate alumni mentoring possibilities. Two council resolutions from previous meetings were implemented. The new Campus Guide was distributed to all alumni and a new alumni business center, including computers, a printer, a fax machine and an internet phone, was opened in the Blunt Alumni Center. An open-microphone dialogue took place between the Council and President James Wright '64A and six senior administrators of the College including Dean of the Faculty Michael Gazzaniga '61, dean of the College Jim Larimore, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Karl Furstenberg '67A, Executive VP for Finance and Administration Adam Keller, VP of Development Carrie Pelzel '54A, VP of Alumni Relations Stan Colla '66 and VP of Public Affairs Bill Walker. The Council voted to open most plenary sessions of the council to the alumni at large, and, at the discretion of the chairs, to meetings of many council committees.
2004: At the December meeting Kelley Fead '78, chair of the Joint Committee on Alumni Governance and Trustee Nominations, presented the final version of the proposed constitution to the Alumni Council which was approved by the council. A meeting of the Association of Alumni followed where the constitution was narrowly defeated. Of the 243 alumni present and voting, 71% were in favor, 27% opposed and 2% abstained. In order to pass, the new constitution required a 75% majority vote of those present at the Association of Alumni meeting. The Nominating Committee presented a slate of three alumni for the one trustee position opening on the Board of Trustees in 2004. The slate included Bruce Duthu '80, Dan Papp '69, and Laura Stein '82. A petition candidate, TJ Rodgers '70, won the trustee election in the spring. Communication was emphasized at the May meeting with councilors addressing four main themes: 1) Dartmouth Communication to Alumni, 2) Alumni Communication to Dartmouth, 3) Council Communication with Key Alumni Organizations, and 4) Effectiveness of the Council Committee Structure. Interaction with students was also prevalent throughout the two meetings which included a Student Research Poster Session and a lobster bake with 700 members of the Senior Class. Ann Duffy '77, the Council's representative to the Alumni Magazine editorial board and Chair of its Business Planning Task Force, reported on the new business model that would be submitted to the Trustees and implemented within three years. This business plan addresses the concerns related to class dues funding of the magazine. At the May meeting it was announced that Josiah Stevenson '57 T'58 would chair the Alumni Governance Task Force to continue the study of the alumni governance issue following the defeat of the constitution that was proposed in December.
2005: The annual theme was alumni leadership and its responsibility to the College. The Nominating Committee presented a slate of four alumni for the two trustee positions opening on the Board of Trustees in 2005. The slate included Sheila Cheston '80, Gregg Engles '79, Richard Lewis'84 and Curtis Welling '71. Two petition candidates, Todd Zywicki '88 and Peter Robinson '79, won the election in the spring. Carrie Pelzel '54A, vice president for Development, made a presentation on the Campaign for the Dartmouth Experience announcing that the campaign kicked off in New York City in November. The campaign has a target of $1.3B and 60% participation, running through 2009. Josiah Stevenson '57 T'58, chair of the Alumni Governance Task Force, reported that the task force was drafting a new proposal for the Association of Alumni constitution for a unified alumni governance structure. The second annual lobster bake was celebrated with the senior class. Councilors participated in discussion groups focusing on four specific areas: 1) Alumni Council Role and Effectiveness, 2) Enfranchisement of Disaffected Alums, 3) Council/College Communications, and 4) Trustee Elections. Two resolutions were passed by the council in support of club sports and in support of a financing plan under consideration for the Alumni Magazine which would be presented to the Trustees
2006: The Alumni Council continued discussion pertaining to the issues raised the prior year. The College Relations Group created two task forces in response to these issues. One task force addressed the suggestion to conduct an alumni survey and the other addressed council effectiveness. Councilors participated in four discussion groups: 1) Restructure Alumni Council Committees, 2) Alumni Council Meeting Agendas, 3) Systematic Dialogue with Constituencies, and 4) Alumni Councilor Expectations & Obligations. As a result of the feedback from these discussion groups and questionnaires the council approved recommendations by the College Relations Group and the council effectiveness task force to 1) Improve the communication system among the Alumni Council, the councilors, and their constituencies by using templates and 2) Form an Orientation Committee. Josiah Stevenson '57, 58Tu, chair of the Alumni Governance Task Force, presented the final version of the new constitution which was approved by the Alumni Council, and will come before alumni for vote in the fall of 2006. The Athletics Committee presented a resolution recommending that the College construct an artificial turf field dedicated to club and intramural sports.
2007: There was a record-high alumni participation rate in the all-media election on the alumni constitution proposed by the Alumni Governance Task Force, with 38 percent of Dartmouth alumni voting. The proposed constitution was defeated with 51 percent of voters rejecting and 49 percent of voters approving it. As a result of the recommendations made during the council meetings, an Orientation Committee was formed and the Communications Committee created templates to increase communications between councilors and their constituencies. The Nominating Committee presented a slate of three alumni for the one trustee position opening on the board of trustees in 2007. The slate included Richard “Sandy” Alderson '69, Sherri Caroll Oberg '82, ‘86Tu and John Wolf '70. A petition candidate, Stephen Smith '88, won the trustee election in the spring. A resolution was passed encouraging all alumni constituencies to democratically elect their representatives to the council. The council approved the following mission statement: “To sustain a fully informed, representative, and engaged exchange of information and sentiment between alumni and their college, and to enhance and inspire alumni involvement that furthers the mission of the College.” President Martha Beattie '76 announced that an Ad Hoc Committee on Council Structure would be formed to examine the council structure and recommend changes for improved function.
2008: The Ad Hoc Committee on Council Structure proposed numerous amendments to the council constitution, impacting the council's membership and committee structure. The amendments were approved at the fall meeting resulting in a membership increase from 98 to 120 voting members. In addition, the Alumni Liaison Committee replaced the College Relations Group as a communications channel between alumni and the Ccllege. Additional constitutional amendments were approved at the spring meeting clarifying Alumni Liaison Committee member terms, lengthening the term of the faculty representative, and providing the council with greater flexibility in the nomination of trustee candidates for the Dartmouth College Board of Trustees. Communications between councilors and their constituents increased significantly, with a fifty percent increase over the previous year. Resolutions passed by the council included 1) the approval of the filing of an amicus brief in support ot the College's motion to dismiss the lawsuit brought by some members of the Association of Alumni Executive Committee; 2) opposition to New Hampshire House Bill 1292 of the 2008 session (a bill which would have repealed a 2003 law that gave the College complete control over its charter); and 3) the expression of disappointment and disapproval of public statements made by alumni-nominated trustee Todd Zywicki '88 at the John William Pope Center for Higher Education Policy on October 27, 2007. The president and president-elect testified on behalf of the Alumni Council in opposition to House Bill 1292 in the New Hampshire State Legislature. The Alumni Liaison Committee produced its first annual report (summarizing council activity and alumni feedback received by councilors) for the board of trustees. There were no trustee elections held.
2009: Thanks to the effective efforts of the Orientation and Communications Committees, the number of councilor communications to constituencies increased substantially. The new ad hoc Committee to Support Greek Letter Organizations broke down into subcommittees to cover various issues: faculty engagement, alumni engagement, physical plant, and long-range planning. This well-accepted committee has been extended until May 2010. The Alumni Liaison Committee has continued to add value to the College collecting feedback from alumni, producing another comprehensive annual report for the board of trustees, creating and posting online a faculty list of recommended books for alumni, and producing an alumni governance organizational flowchart. The ad hoc Election Selection Committee created a “best practices” manual that includes recommended procedures for the election and selection of representatives to the Alumni Council. Councilors participated in a conference call with President James Wright, Executive Vice President for Finance Administration Adam Keller, and Vice President for Alumni Relations David Spalding ’76 to discuss the College budget. The Student Affairs Committee participated in a conference call with head football coach Buddy Teevens ’79, Athletic Director Josie Harper and Deputy Director of Athletics Bob Ceplikas ’78 regarding the Dartmouth football program. Resolutions passed by the council included 1) Recommendation of the alumni to vote in favor of the proposed amendments to the Constitution of the Association of Alumni which would simplify and clarify the trustee election process; 2) Opposing the lawsuit filed by seven individual alumni against the Board of Trustees of Dartmouth College, calling for its immediate withdrawal; 3) Commending President Wright for his efforts on behalf of veterans of the U.S. armed services and encouraging the College to continue to build on his legacy; 4) Thanking Martha Hartfiel as chair of the Nominating and Alumni Trustee Search Committee and 5) Thanking John Daukas ’84 for his leadership as president of the Alumni Council. The Association of Alumni election regarding the proposed constitutional amendment, creating one person-one vote head to head Alumni Trustee elections in the future, passed by a margin of 82% to 18% of those alumni voting.