SAA strives to connect students, alumni

By Hemanth Rao Meka
Campus Life Staff

The Student Alumni Association believes that students are the foundation of the Institute. They try to enhance the relationship between students, alumni, and others so that the heritage of Georgia Tech will be preserved and enriched.

The Student Alumni Association, started in 1988 and was founded by the Alumni Association. It was created to be a liaison between alumni and the current students at GT. SAA currently has over 200 members to its credit. The students play different roles in the organization, from calling students and alumni to organizing social and recruiting events. A large part of the members' duties is publicizing SAA and the Alumni Association.

Homecoming parades and other Alumni Association supported events depend on alumni participation. However, in the last few years, there have been a diminishing number of alumni who donate to Tech, even though the size of donations has increased.

SAA is trying to make students aware of the need for their support after graduation. They also strive to make their fellow students aware of support services that they may not be aware of. Amanda Martin, the SAA Vice President of Internal Relations, asks, "who better than the students to tell other students about the opportunities that exist for them in the Alumni Association?"

The Student Alumni Association tries to help students to meet alumni in similar fields and establish contacts for co-op and future employment options. It also helps students to learn how they could apply their major to a field in the real world. SAA organizes get-togethers for students and alumni to mix and learn more from each other. SAA has designed programs to facilitate a friendly environment between alumni and current students.

Some of SAA's programs include the Mentor program, where students are matched with alumni on an individual basis based on their major and career interests. This program allows the students to learn about career possibilities in their fields and get advisement on issues ranging from classes to co-op and internship options.

SAA also arranges for alumni speakers at their meetings. Varying from one speaker to a panel of four to five different people, they speak to students, talking about what they did with their degree once they got it, how they progressed in life, and similar topics.

The Georgia Power Mentor program is one of SAA's newest programs. The GT alumni who work at Georgia Power have a club, and they did an exchange program with the SAA.

This year 22 students and 22 alumni paired off to participate in a weeklong program, with events occurring at both Georgia Tech and Georgia Power. For a one day, the GT Alumni from Georgia Power went to class, went on a tour, and basically experienced student life again for a day. Some GT Alumni had not seen campus since they graduated, even though they work fairly close to Tech.

The students in turn take the place of these Alumni by going to Georgia Power and spending a day in the office or lab— depending on what their mentor did in his/her job. From seeing upcoming projects like electric cars to having an executive lunch, students had a novel taste of life "in the real world."

This exchange gives students hands-on experience in the industry while allowing GT Alumni to relive some of their college experiences. The Georgia Power program lasted only a week, but a few students kept in touch with their mentor and extended the relationship. The Georgia Power Mentor program began only last year, but has been well-received by the participants. SAA is planning on doing it again this winter and expanding it to accommodate other such companies.

The motto of the Student Alumni Association is "Students helping students, past, present and future." Upcoming programs include GT LINCS (GT Liaison for Incoming College Students) which occurs in May, has been going on for several years. Admissions provides SAA with a list of all incoming freshmen and their phone numbers. The organization then gets current students at Tech to call them and answer any questions they may have. This helps incoming students to feel more connected before arriving on campus. In the past, only out of state residents — 35% of incoming freshmen — were contacted. However, last spring over 200 volunteers dedicated their time to calling every incoming freshman. The addition of instate freshmen to the list added a few thousand extra students to the program. "That's our big quantitative accomplishment this year", said Amanda Martin.

SAA is an open organization; any Tech student can join. However, one branch of SAA, the Georgia Tech Ambassadors, is a closed membership organization which comes under the jurisdiction of the Alumni Association.

The students in this subdivision of the SAA represent the student body on behalf of the Alumni Association or the President. If Alumni or special visitors are visiting campus and wanted to meet students or want a tour, the Alumni Association calls on the Ambassadors to show the visitors around.

Ambassadors have a fairly strenuous application and interview process. Last year, over 100 people competed for 25 spots. Being an ambassador allows students to develop professional skills through interaction with distinguished Alumni.

SAA is part of a national network called the SAA/SF (Student Alumni Association/Student Foundation) which incorporates SAAs and SFs from different universities around the U.S. and Canada. It helps SAAs and SFs share ideas in recruitment, programming, and fund-raising.

The SAA is not an SGA-supported organization; its operating costs come totally from the Alumni Association, although there is a $10 membership fee.

SAA is widely recognized on campus. Their office is in the Alumni/Faculty House, across the street from Bobby Dodd Stadium on North Avenue. To become a member of SAA or obtain additional information on SAA and any of its programs, contact the Alumni Association at (404) 894-2391 or e-mail the Student Alumni Association at dsadmsa@prism.gatech.edu.

Questions or comments about this page? Feedback