Alumni Association

The need to reevaluate and reimage our alumni association structure to a less complex and manageable size has been lingering for quite some time. After the pandemic, it was really brought to the forefront that the structure of the organization was cumbersome and could not be sustained with the level of involvement available from AAL individuals. While there were a number of people who were interested in hearing and discussing ideas, less were able to take a consistently active role and see the ideas to fruition. Sometimes, the AAL ideas were not in-sync with the needs and direction of ISE, as the AAL was working more independently. Additionally, AAL ideas often surpassed the Home Office’s available resources to support the ideas. And, for these reasons, and many others, we needed to seek a new structure to ensure the future success of the association.

Over most of 2024, the Alumni Engagement Task Force made up of 12 Semester at Sea stakeholders, including SAS alumni from the student, faculty, staff, ISE Home Office Staff, and Lifelong Learner groups, as well as representatives providing an international and a parental perspective, engaged in a process of thoughtful and deliberate research – all with the goal of understanding the best model for SAS’s future alumni association.

The task force completed multiple types of research, including extensive examinations of best practices and models of university alumni and nonprofit organization associations to create benchmarks, historical research on past SAS models, a survey of SAS alumni (with over 1000 responses and all voyages represented!), a listening tour with stakeholders at every level (recent student alumni all the way up to SAS Board members), and several task force meetings that included strategic discussions of these methods and what might work best for the future of the SAS’s alumni association. Attend the AAL annual meeting (required for new members);

Our new primary goal for the SAS Alumni Association is to “create a broad-based alumni engagement program that appeals to a wide range of our more than 74,000 alumni, with an organizational and volunteer structure that is manageable and sustainable.”

In this new structure, the various alumni councils will be dissolved. Again, this is part of an effort to simplify the overall structure of the Alumni Association. Though the councils will no longer be part of the formal structure tied to ISE oversight, we will encourage all alumni to engage with their respective community groups through the new digital platform, Almabase. For example, alumni who sailed as Lifelong Learners can find a designated area for Lifelong Learners only. In this platform, you will find many spaces and mechanisms to connect socially, network, or plan informal get-togethers as much as you’d like with whomever you like!

We know many of you enjoy volunteering and want to help in some way. One area we will really need your help is getting every SAS alumni into our new digital alumni platform, Almabase! We would love your help spreading the word to all SAS alumni about this platform, and that this will be the new central hub for all SAS alumni.

Some of the key findings from this research process indicated that the previous structure of the Alumni Association, with its many counsels and groups, was complex and, at times, complicated, which made communication challenging. In the early iterations of the Alumni Association, the structure was quite a bit simpler. Over time, with the intention of enhancing the organization, more new structures and councils were added. However, these changes also unintentionally created a more intricate framework, making management and effective communication more challenging. ISE also did not have enough dedicated Home Office resources to manage the myriad of requests and ideas that were thoughtfully generated by these groups.

Additionally, the organization has evolved significantly, shifting from relying heavily on volunteer support for its day-to-day operations to utilizing advanced tools and resources to manage those tasks. This progress is a positive reflection of growth—much like watching a child grow up, head off to college, and become independent. While the connection and love remain strong, the organization is now more self-sufficient and prepared to thrive in a new era.

The research also showed strong support for establishing clear parameters to help guide the organization and keep it organized with clear goals. A clear and simple statement of the association’s mission would also be valued. As another respondent shared: the association “needs a very clear mission for advisory board and communication structure. Other organizations give alumni boards guidelines, which then prevents volunteers from drifting.” Also, because of the old model’s complexities, communication between groups was sometimes a barrier. Therefore, it’s important that the new model streamlines these efforts, especially with enhanced staff guidance and the implementation of our new digital alumni platform, Almabase (read more about this platform below!)

From the listening tours, the task force received excellent, constructive feedback, and most of those involved in the tours were excited about the newly proposed structure and approach. The listening tours, and the entire task force research process, reiterated the strength and passion of our alumni community. A demonstrated commitment to serving the needs and interests of Semester at Sea alumni;

Yes, local chapter events will continue! Our surveys underlined the value of local chapters and we also know this is an area that needs more attention and revitalization. Once the new Alumni Association Advisory Committee is in place, this will be an area of focus for them to improve. Having all chapter event work conducted with uniform oversight by the larger committee will help ensure consistency and adherence to committee priorities, all the while engaging chapters, leading events, and promoting connection across local groups of SAS alumni members. Additionally, Almabase will make it easier for alumni to find their local chapter and connect with others in their area through their “spaces” feature.

At this time, there are no plans for a Homecoming voyage on the MV World Odyssey. With the ship not returning to the US, and the very limited timeframe in between voyages that is reserved for ship maintenance, there isn’t a timeframe for a Homecoming voyage to take place. However, we continue to check in with the operations team to see if anything has changed and we understand it is a high priority for many of our alumni.