Alumni Council
The Tufts Alumni Council is the governing body of the Tufts University Alumni Association, which includes all persons who have received a degree from any school or program of Tufts University, as well as those former students who pursued an approved course of study for at least one year. Membership in the Alumni association is automatic and there is no fee.
The Alumni Council has more than 300 term, transitional, and emeritus members representing all the schools of the university. Nine new members are elected each year to a 10-year term. Upon conclusion of their initial term, members may be offered additional terms by the Council. Alumni who have served at least two 10-year terms may be offered emeritus membership on the Council. Each year the senior class elects four “Transitional Members” to a five-year term. This ensures that young graduates are represented in the leadership of the Alumni Association.
The Alumni Council has broad influence on programs and services for all Tufts graduates. Much of the Council's work is accomplished through its committees and worldwide network of regional alumni chapters. Council members research and implement important initiatives through the following standing committees: Executive, Alumni Resources, Alumni Weekend, Awards, Career Services, Communications, Continuing Education, Development, Financial Resources, Homecoming, Nominating, Regional Programs, Shared Interest Groups, Student Issues and Young Alumni, and Traditions.
Alumni elected to the council are expected to provide significant leadership and support to the university and the alumni body. They make contributions to Tufts by directing programs, services and benefits for all graduates. Council members are also expected to contribute financially to the University.
An example of the Council’s financial support of Tufts is the collective pledge made by Council members in October 2006 to raise $20 million and seek 100 percent participation from its membership in support of the University’s Beyond Boundaries campaign which concluded in July 2011. The Alumni Council almost doubled its campaign pledge, raising $39,908,114 and 83% of its members gave to Tufts each year during the campaign period, 2006-2011.
A new program in 2011, Back to the Hill: Young Alumni Festival, jointly developed by the Alumni Council’s Student Issues and Young Alumni Committee and Alumni Weekend Committees invited the Classes of 2001–2010 back to campus to take over the Hill and recapture many of the special moments of their Tufts lives—minus the exams! More than 600 alumni braved the rain to reunite June 10-12, coming from as close as Somerville and as far away as Japan. Many relived their dorm days by bunking down in South Hall and Latin Way suites.
In addition to developing and sponsoring programs and services for alumni, the Council also organizes the annual alumni elections to elect alumni to the Tufts University Board of Trustees and the Alumni Council. 10 of the 40 members of the University’s Board are elected by alumni, two each year for five-year terms (the other 30 are appointed by the Board of Trustees). Alumni Council members are elected by alumni ballot for a 10-year term.
The Nominating Committee of the Alumni Council is responsible for nominating candidates for the Alumni Elections and for overseeing the elections. The Nominating Committee works with the University’s Board of Trustees to determine their needs and select the most worthy and suitable alumni for nomination and eventual election by alumni. For the Alumni Council, the Nominating Committee seeks alumni who have demonstrated support of the university through participation in university or alumni-related activities.
Nominate a graduate of the School of Arts, Sciences & Engineering, The Fletcher School, or the School of Dental Medicine to run for election to the Alumni Council in 2013. (Word document)
Each year, the Nominating Committee strives to offer a slate which will maintain a council that is as balanced as possible in terms of respective schools within the university, age, gender, geographical location, and ethnicity.
Alumni Association Officers (Executive Committee) 2012-2013
| President | Brian McCarthy, A75, A07P |
| President Elect | Kate Kaplan, G95 |
| Administrative Vice Presidents | Kevin Boyle, A78 Keshia Pollack, A00 |
| Regional Vice Presidents | Diana Lopez, J78 David Meyers, A96 Regina Rockefeller, J73 |
| Directors | John Barrett, E88 Mark Ferri, A84, F86 Chris Goguen, A92 Ken Fan E01, F07 Doug Moll, A85, D85, DG91 |
| Treasurer | Vikki Garth, J81 |
| Immediate Past President | Barbara Clarke, J88 |
Elected by alumni to the Alumni Council (The governing body of the Tufts University Alumni Association)
as Term Members for a 10-year term, 2012-2022:
From the School of Arts and Sciences
Ethan D. Ganc, A96 of New York, NY
Jeff Katzin, A06 of New York, NY
Adam Klein, A94 of Atlanta, GA
Chris Erric Maddox, A00 of Los Angeles, CA
Lananh Nguyen, A04 of London, England
Jared Pollard, A05 of Jersey City, NJ
Valerie Wencis, A04 of Boston, MA
From the School of Medicine
Jack Tsai, M06 of Boston, MA
From the Graduate Programs in Arts Sciences & Engineering
Christina Macken, AG 09 of Washington, DC
Elected from the Class of 2012 by their class to the Alumni Council
as Transitional Members for a 5-year term, 2012-2017:
Danielle Cotter
Kate de Klerk
Kristen Davenport
Sharmaine Oh
