Alumni
Launched by the Northwestern Alumni Association last fall, the Senior Mentorship Program engages the global alumni network to help seniors prepare for the next step amid a pandemic that has
diminished job prospects.
diminished job prospects.
MaryAnn Ihejirika Marsh grew up hearing about Northwestern, where her father met the people who helped his wife and children escape war-torn Nigeria and find refuge in America. If it hadn’t been for her father’s experience at Northwestern, she might not be here today.
The Northwestern Alumni Association’s career programs moved to an all-virtual format after the pandemic began. Amid increasing uncertainty in the job market and high unemployment rates, the NAA offers a range of virtual learning and mentorship programs for alumni at all stages of their careers, whether they are looking for their first job, making a change or seeking professional development.
Several alumnae groups make an impact that is felt across Northwestern — through financial support for people and programs, the creation of continuing education programs that share the University’s academic resources with the greater community, and professional opportunities that develop the next generation of women leaders.
Andrea Chen’s global outlook comes from an international childhood, her time at Northwestern and a career that has taken her across the world. A Hong Kong–based corporate strategist for Royal Philips, a global health technology company, Chen reflects on how her cross-cultural upbringing shaped her identity and desire to give back to the University.
Many Northwestern alumni consider themselves Wildcats for life, but when you spend three years playing the role of Willie the Wildcat, it becomes part of your identity. Zoe Goodman proudly served as the University’s mascot from 2010 to 2013.
Flanked by an arch of rainbow-colored balloons, David Waymer ’14 had an exciting announcement for the nearly 70 members of the class of 2019 standing before him. As president of the Northwestern University Gay and Lesbian Alumni Association (NUGALA), he was speaking at Lavender Graduation — a ceremony held June 18 to celebrate the achievements of graduating students in the University’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual and ally community.
The Scott family tree has deep roots on Northwestern’s Evanston campus, the place where three of the last four generations met future spouses during their first year. Gordon Scott ’89, the great-grandson of former University president Walter Dill Scott, and Anne Nelson Scott ’89 found love, lifelong friends and a sense of belonging soon after arriving at Northwestern in 1985.
Since returning home to China seven years ago, Bozhong Xue has revitalized the NU Club of Beijing, interviewed prospective students as a member of the Alumni Admission Council, recruited high school students to volunteer for the Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra concert last spring and supported international student scholarships at the Bienen School of Music. For his efforts, Xue received the inaugural Northwestern Alumni Association President’s Award in September.
Billed as an opportunity to get “a real taste of the intellectual brew that is stimulating the campus,” the Alumni-Faculty Seminar launched on April 11, 1970. About 500 alumni filled classrooms in the Technological Institute to hear faculty lecture on the changing standards of masculinity and femininity, an account of the Chicago Seven conspiracy trial and other national and international issues, the arts and sciences and news from the University.
