Constituents

The Iowa State University Alumni Association (ISUAA) serves Iowa State’s alumni, current students, Iowa State friends, and the entire University community with comprehensive programs and services. An independent 501(c)3, self-governing organization, ISUAA receives its funding from the dues paid by its over 50,000 members. While many services and programs are available to all constituents, an important core of benefits is available only to Alumni Association members.

Iowa State has more than 195,400 alumni, who live and work in more than 130 countries worldwide—from Algeria to Zimbabwe—and in every state in the nation. Alumni are involved in every facet of University life: They serve on governing boards, return to the classroom as guest lecturers, and provide substantial financial support.

Through their discoveries and achievements, Iowa State alumni have not only distinguished themselves, they have also enhanced the reputation of the University. Although the list of notable alumni is lengthy, a few contemporary examples includes: Ted Kooser, Pulitzer prize winner and U.S. Poet Laureate; Robert Bartley, recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom; Cael Sanderson, Olympic Gold Medalist; Graham Spanier, president of Penn State University; Bruce Roth, inventor of the life-saving drug Lipitor; and Ike Harris, recently named one of the 75 most powerful African Americans in corporate America.

A large concentration of Iowa State’s alumni (72,691) lives in the state of Iowa. A total of 5,548 alumni reside in countries outside the United States. In terms of gender breakdown, 62 percent of alumni are male, 38 percent are female. Alumni represent each college and academic discipline, each decade since the 1910s, and many diverse ethnic groups.

Alumni are vocal supporters of Iowa State who are not timid about sharing their concerns. The Alumni Association provides direct, frequent communication to alumni about university news, sports, and activities of other alumni. The Association also provides an important feedback tool for alumni to voice their opinions: letters to the editor of ISU News Flash and VISIONS magazine. The Association’s Web site has conducted opinion polls, and e-mail blasts have solicited feedback from alumni on key issues.

Fall 2004 enrollment at Iowa State was 26,380. That same year, membership in the Student Alumni Association, created by the Alumni Association in 1996, reached an all-time record, surpassing 5,000 members. SAA membership represented nearly 20% of total enrolled students. The student membership program is the second largest in the country. Students who join the Student Alumni Association join the Alumni Association at a higher rate after graduation and remain committed to the university at a higher rate than the overall student body.

In addition to our Student Alumni Association membership program, the ISUAA serves the Iowa State student population through the 75-member Student Alumni Leadership Council, Cyclone Alley program, Homecoming activities, Family of the Year, senior class events, and student scholarships. Alumni are involved as student mentors; they assist with new student recruitment, serve as speakers for clubs and in classes, and participate in Career Preview Days job shadowing activities; and they return to campus as recruiters to hire new graduates.

Friends of Iowa State are perhaps too numerous to count, but we do keep in touch with a special group of non-alumni former students, spouses, parents, Iowa State faculty and staff, and others who have chosen to strengthen their affiliation with ISU through Association membership. More than 5,000 non-alumni friends represented 12% of the Association’s FY04 total membership.

The ISU Alumni Association maintains a symbiotic relationship with special groups of alumni and with affiliated organizations within the university. Of particular mention are The Circle of former presidents and chairs of the ISUAA Board of Directors and former executive directors of the Alumni Association, alumni clubs throughout Iowa and the nation, and special-interest groups such as Family of the Year Society. These groups have supported the university in many ways, including financial contributions to the alumni center building project and to the Official University Mace.

The Association maintains strategic alliances with Iowa State’s Office of Admissions, Department of Athletics, academic colleges, The ISU Foundation, Office of Governmental Relations, President’s Office, University Book Store, and other groups to ensure the coordination of alumni and university events, enhance student recruitment, and maintain the highest level of communication to alumni and the university community.