In the five years since she graduated from the University of Miami, Shajena Erazo, A.B. ’08, has blossomed into a community leader, making a difference in the lives of at-risk students as a public school teacher in Washington, D.C. Erazo was named a White House Champions of Change finalist in 2012 and a D.C. Teacher of the Year finalist in 2013.

Now she’s also one of more than 60 ambitious and accomplished young alumni who have chosen to serve their alma mater through the Young Alumni Leadership Council (YALC).

“The YALC creates a transition and pipeline for students to go from being recent college graduates trying to figure out how they’ll change the world to active members of society who continue to invest in their university as alumni,” says Erazo, who was a scholarship recipient at UM. “I joined because I want to keep giving back to the school that gave me so much.”

YALC members are chosen nationally to address the particular needs, challenges, and perspectives of young alumni. They convened the first of two annual meetings during Alumni Weekend in November. Their mission is to support UM and the UM Alumni Association through the new Young Alumni Program, launched in January 2013.

Already the program has received a warm welcome from those it aims to engage. Almost 7,000 young alumni opened an email sent to introduce them to the Young Alumni Program—that’s roughly 42 percent of its intended recipients. Thousands more discovered the program via social media posts. As a result, the Young Alumni Program’s first official campaign—to support the GOLDstein Family Challenge—surpassed expectations (see page 34); traveling initiatives, like the Impact of U tour with President Donna E. Shalala and Welcome to the Neighborhood receptions (#W2UMHood), held from Savannah to San Francisco, have boasted strong attendance rates as well.

The goal of the Young Alumni Program is to boost involvement and philanthropy in a key constituency by educating current UM students about the program’s benefits and services and by building a group of young leaders who will guide the program to success for the foreseeable future.

With more and more volunteers like Erazo, who hopes to become U.S. secretary of education or UM president one day, that future is looking brighter than ever. For more information visit miami.edu/youngalumni.

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Philanthropic young alumnus Sean Goldstein, B.B.A. ’12

The GOLDstein Family Challenge—to get 2,013 young alumni to donate by the end of the 2013 fiscal year—was so successful that the Goldstein family, Sandy, B.B.A. ’81, M.B.A. ’85, Cindy, B.S.N. ’79, and their son Sean, B.B.A. ’12, offered a bonus challenge of $10,000 above their original $25,000 pledge to student scholarships if 2,400 young alumni stepped up.

Exceeding expectations again, a total of 2,821 young alumni gave by the deadline, raising $602,656.79 to support a variety of programming, including student scholarships. As a result, young alumni Annual Giving participation increased to 11.3 percent, up approximately 4 percent over last year. The top five areas supported were ophthalmology, athletics, the Miller School of Medicine, UM football, and financial aid.

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Young Alumni Program encourages recent grads to ‘be a force’

Ian Chambers, B.S.M.A.S. ’12, left, is among the many UM graduates of the past decade passionate about contributing to his alma mater’s new Young Alumni Program. Photos by Jenny Abreu

With the University of Miami’s newest graduates blazing a trail toward bright futures, the UM Alumni Association wants them to know it is keeping pace. In January it launched the Young Alumni Program.

“We want to create a reciprocal relationship with young alumni,” explains Kate Lake, director of Alumni Programs, Young Alumni, and Student Advancement. “We’re excited to engage this unique group in ways that both are relevant to them and position them for future alumni leadership roles.”

UM alumni of the past decade, typically ages 21 to 35, now number around 23,000 and represent a new era—all earned undergraduate degrees during President Donna E. Shalala’s tenure, which began in 2001. This year Shalala is embarking on a first-ever national tour devoted to them.

Internet-savvy sisters Adrienne, B.B.A. ’09, and Stephanie, B.B.A. ’11, Vendetti, founders of HowtoBeaRedhead.com, see value in this targeted outreach. “As students we were trained to think outside the box,” they say. “This program allows young alumni to continue innovating, networking, and building relationships together.”

One of the first Young Alumni initiatives is the GOLDstein (Graduates Of the Last Decade) Family Challenge. Sandy, B.B.A. ’81, M.B.A. ’85, and Cindy, B.S.N. ’79, Goldstein will give $25,000 to need-based scholarships if 2,013 young alumni like their son Sean Goldstein, B.B.A. ’12, make a gift to UM by May 31. Plans for a regional challenge are also under way between young alumni in Boston and Washington, D.C. And one anonymous ’Cane has pledged $20,000 to the Schools of Communication and Architecture if the number of gifts designated to those schools from their young alumni goes up 25 percent and 33 percent, respectively, over last year.

“With this challenge, young alumni have the chance to be a real force in the University’s Momentum2 capital campaign,” says Gabe Trieger, B.L.A. ’10, assistant director of Annual Giving, Young Alumni, and Student Philanthropy.

Prominent ’Canes are also taking the lead in developing benefits, services, and events for their millennial peers through the newly formed Young Alumni Leadership Council. “We look forward to bringing meaningful programs, leadership opportunities, and networking outlets to young alumni around the world,” says council member Danny Carvajal, B.B.A. ’08, a former Student Government president. “It’s so important that young alumni become the next generation of alumni leaders—supporting and preserving the future of the U.”

Ian Chambers, B.S.M.A.S. ’12, agrees: “The Young Alumni Program is allowing me to encourage my classmates to support the U, from the sports stands to the far reaches of social media.”

For more information, visit miami.edu/youngalumni.

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