In a few short weeks, thousands of Quakers will come together for Alumni Weekend 2024.
Time to Reminisce, Reconnect, and Remember
With Alumni Weekend just around the corner, learn about some of the dedicated volunteers who make it happen
Published: April 18, 2024
They’ll reminisce with their classmates, revisit favorite spots on campus, and tour the latest additions to Penn’s landscape. On Saturday morning, they’ll don their finest Red and Blue as they parade proudly down Locust Walk, ringing their cowbells along the way.
And yes, they will raise a glass (or two) to Dear Old Penn!
But before the big celebration, a smaller group of alumni, several hundred strong, is hard at work planning class events, making phone calls, and encouraging their classmates to come back and give back.
Who are these loyal Quakers? They are class reunion volunteers.
Each reunion class—from the 5th through the 70th—has a Reunion committee focused on communications, event planning, and outreach to promote attendance and participation in the class gift. This year, members of the 75th reunion class are involved as well—three members of the Class of 1949 will be leading the parade!
“What’s unique about Penn reunion volunteers is that the giving and engagement volunteers work so closely together to communicate the ‘come back, give back’ message that is so central to reunion,” explains Lizzy Carroll, SPP’22, Director of Class Giving and Reunions.
Meet a Volunteer for the 5th Reunion
Michael Krone, C’19, L’24, WG’24, a member of the Reunion Committee for the Class of 2019, is working hard to promote both engagement and giving. “As someone who had much of his own Penn education covered by financial aid, I am excited to pay it forward for the next generation,” Krone explains.
Krone has enjoyed working with his classmates to plan events that harken back to their time at Penn, including an afterparty following Franklin Fest. He takes pride in the fact that signups for the Class of 2019 reunion are higher than average for fifth reunion classes.
Alumni Weekend promises to be busier for Krone than for most returning alumni. In addition to celebrating with his class, he’ll be marching in not one, or two, but three graduation ceremonies that weekend: Wharton MBA Sunday, and Penn Carey Law and University-wide Commencement Monday, as he receives his JD/MBA degree. There is only one issue: when to sleep! “Sleep will come later,” he offers, maybe after Alumni Weekend.
If you’re considering volunteering for Penn, just go ahead and do it. Volunteer for that committee, join that board. Most opportunities for alumni to give back to Penn are looking for additional eyes, ears, and brains. If you’re thinking about it, go for it!”Michael Krone, C’19, L’24, WG’24
Meet a Volunteer for the 35th Reunion
Unlike Krone, Lolita Jackson, ENG’89, is an old hand at reunion planning.
Her decades-long involvement stemmed from an early disappointment: a poor turnout among her fellow Black classmates at her 5th reunion. For the 10th reunion, it was time to get creative. Jackson worked with her classmate, David P. France, C’89, to resurrect France’s famous Black to School parties from their undergraduate years to generate excitement around reunion. The result: Reunion attendance among Black alumni increased more than fivefold for the 10th reunion.
Resolved to build on that momentum, the Class of 1989 launched the 250-In-5 campaign, which focused on raising $250,000 in five years, primarily from Black alumni. Ultimately, they exceeded their goal, raising nearly $1 million for the DuBois College House Scholars Fund.
After this success, Jackson was tapped to be her Class Reunion Chair for the 15th reunion, and then again for the 20th, 25th, and 30th. Now Class Co-President alongside Mike Karz, C’89, W’89, Jackson has transitioned the job of Reunion Chair to her successor, Julia Pirkey Stone, C’89, but still remains deeply involved.
The Class of 1989 is known for innovative approaches to class outreach. It was the first class to have its own Facebook page (in 2009) and the first to host pre-reunion events all over the country to generate interest in coming back for Alumni Weekend.
The Class has won the Penn Alumni Class Award of Merit twice, in 2014 and 2004. For their last reunion, the Class broke the 30th reunion attendance record, received the Penn Alumni Presidents Cup for Outstanding Reunion Attendance, and won the David N. Tyre Award for Excellence in Class Communications for their creative and successful outreach in 2019.
“The Class of 1989 sets a great example for all the reunion classes because of their leadership and success,” explains Lisbeth Willis, Director of Classes & Reunions. Willis also commends Jackson for her success on another front: diversifying attendance, ensuring that all voices are heard in the lead-up to reunion, and planning events that are inclusive and appealing to the entire class as well as to the Penn community. “Her passion for her class and for Penn is contagious,” Willis continues. “No one wears Red and Blue better than Lolita!”
Jackson is never content to rest on past laurels. She is looking forward to another great (dare we say award-winning) reunion this year for the Class of 1989. “We’ve heightened expectations of what’s possible,” she says.
