From the Alumni Association:

Mary Small Poore, President—Alumni Association Board of Directors

Falling in Love All Over Again

I am very excited to be the newest President of the SHU Alumni Association. After graduation, I stayed connected to Siena for nearly a decade before drifting away…life just seemed to get in the way. But in 2006, I attended Sister Peg Albert’s presidential inauguration—and I have been drawn back ever since. You might say I fell in love with Siena all over again. The more time I spent on campus, the more I remembered what drew me here in the first place: the people and sense of community.

If you attended Homecoming 2013, you know about the excitement on campus and the incredible happenings that continue here. I consider myself blessed to be a part of this growing university. As I reflect on Homecoming, I can’t help but think it is the culmination of many small, meaningful connections that made the weekend so spectacular. And these connections, in turn, are what make this a spectacular university. Let me share a few observations:

Alumni Profile: Matt Larson ’07

Mission Accomplished: McNair Graduate Matt Larson ’07 Completes PhD, a First for SHU-Based Program

Matt Larson ’07 was the first, and hopefully, not the last. The graduate of the McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program was the first Siena Heights University student to receive his doctorate since the program was instituted on the SHU campus.

Larson, who finished his dissertation and earned a PhD in criminology and criminal justice from Arizona State University last spring, is currently an assistant professor in the College of Public Health and Social Justice at St. Louis University.

“When I started at Siena I had no clue that I would go on to graduate school,” said Larson, a first-generation college student. “I was just thrilled to be pursuing my bachelor’s degree.”

In fact, Larson was perfectly content running on the track team and taking criminal justice courses until he discovered McNair, a federally funded program designed to encourage eligible students to pursue graduate studies leading to the completion of a doctoral degree.

“I found out about the McNair program at about the same time I started to fall out of love with running and in love with academics,” Larson said. “I knew at that point that graduate school was one of my options, so applying was a no-brainer.”

From the Alumni Office:

My College, My University, My Siena!

Jennifer Hamlin ChurchAssociate VP for Advancement & Director of Alumni Relations

Homecoming 2013: What a weekend! Hundreds of alumni came back to campus, the rain stayed away, there were reunions of all kinds—classes, cheerleaders, sorority sisters, fellow semester-travelers to Italy, baseball players. Read all about it in this issue of Reflections.

We work all year on Homecoming and when it’s over, I’m always in a reflective mood. That was especially true this year, because I was honored to be one of your 2013 alumni award winners. Standing on the awards stage at the start of Homecoming gave me a new perspective on Siena. So this seems a good time to talk about my work and why I am so grateful to be at this place.

My job is all about building relationships: inviting friends and alumni (you!) to reconnect meaningfully with the school you once attended. Sometimes, alums are concerned that today’s University seems different from the college they attended 20, 30, 50—or 5—years ago. And it is different: There are new buildings. There are men. There are no uniforms or room inspections, no mandatory Mass. There are students who never set foot on campus. Depending on when you attended Siena, any or all of those differences might be jarring.