PEL Porch Party Slide Show: Alumni Ambassadors welcome new alumni from the Class of 2016

(l-r) Alumni Dovev Weaver, Sr. '16, Patti Cooksey '97, who also is PEL's director of general education, Ari Georgiou '16, Kristy McAdams '16, Patricia Brown '94, guest Angie Guzman, Tami Toms '16, Nancy Bebout '16, Frank Terrell '98, April Barkley16, Cal Brown '16, PEL Alumni Coordinator Donna Littell '75, Gail Goss '07, Chrissy Jackson '16, Eckerd College Director of Alumni Engagement Jessica Fugate, Ron Hyatt '97, PEL Executive Director Amanda Hagood, and Professor Naveen Malhotra attended the PEL Porch Party to welcome new alumni.  

Images courtesy of ASPEC member Jacquie Calnan.

Despite the threat of heavy storms, more than twenty PEL people and guests gathered at Lewis House on Saturday, June 11, to welcome members of the Class of 2016 into the ranks of the Alumni Ambassadors. PEL Alumni Coordinator Donna Littell  and Eckerd College Director of Alumni Engagement Jessica Fugate greeted the group, PEL Executive Director Amanda Hagood explained some of the benefits and goals of the PEL Alumni Ambassadors, and all enjoyed relaxing on the waterfront porch.

Alumni attending spanned 40 years, beginning with Donna Littell '75, who majored in Education. Donna went on to become a teacher and then a school administrator at various Pinellas County elementary and middle schools before coming to PEL in 1992 as an LLV instructor and degree planner.

Patricia Brown '94 (Creative Writing), Patti Cooksey '97 (American Studies), Ron Hyatt '97 (Management), and Frank Terrell '98 (American Studies) represented the 1990s.

Gail Goss '07 (Human Development), Chris Stafford '08 (Management), and Regina Knight '10 (Human Development) represented graduates of the first decade of the 21st century. 

Class of 2016 alumni attending were April Barkley (American Studies), Nancy BeBout (Concentration in Organizational Studies), Cal Brown (Visual Arts), Ari Georgiou (Business Management), Chrissy Jackson (Organizational Studies), Kristy McAdams (Human Development), Tami Toms (Humanities), and Dovev Weaver, Sr. (Humanities).

Note: An academic class includes all graduates from June of one year through May of the following year. For instance, students who graduated in August or December 2015 and in January or May 2016 are all considered part of the Class of 2016.

PEL Alumni Ambassadors: The Year in Review

From attending a Rays game in September 2015 to catching some rays at the PEL Porch Party in June 2016, Alumni Ambassadors spread the good news of Eckerd College's PEL in a number of ways this year:

 
PEL Alumni Social & Tampa Bay Rays Game: In September, 2015, a group of PEL Alumni Ambassadors gathered first at Ferg's Sports Bar and Grill then moved to the Trop to watch the Tampa Bay Rays play the Baltimore Orioles. A portion of the proceeds benefited the PEL Annual Scholarship Fund.

Sallie House Fun Day volunteers gather for a group photo.

Sallie House Fun Day: In November 2015, PEL Alumni Ambassadors organized a fun day for 48 children and eight staff members from the St. Petersburg Salvation Army's Sallie House and Children’s Village, two crisis shelters serving local children.

A group of 30 volunteers, including PEL and residential students, alumni, staff, and faculty, hosted an array of activities for the young visitors, who played field games, read stories, created brightly colored sand pictures, learned about marine animals in touch tanks provided by the Galbraith Marine Science Lab, and ate lunch in the dining hall. Many of the children saw what a college is for the first time, and volunteers commented on the joy of working in an inter-generational and cross-campus event.

Writers in Paradise Pre-Party: In January 2016, PEL Alumni Ambassadors sponsored an event for about 30 PEL alumni who had majored, minored, or completed a concentration in creative writing or literature.

The group gathered before the opening night of Writers in Paradise, an internationally recognized writing conference hosted by Eckerd College, to share writing news and accomplishments and to hear St. Petersburg Poet Laureate and Eckerd PEL Professor Helen Wallace speak.

PEL Alumni Reception at Eckerd College Reunion Weekend:  In March 2016, PEL Alumni Ambassadors helped organize the PEL Alumni Reception held at Lewis House as part of the Eckerd College Reunion Weekend.




 

Quest for Meaning Classes: In May 2016, Alumni Ambassadors spoke to PEL students in  the Quest for Meaning courses, most of whom would be graduating that month or in August, about life after PEL and about becoming an Alumni Ambassador themselves.




Throughout the year, PEL Alumni Ambassadors have:

Akin-tunde Akintewe '15 (Visual Arts) shares his PEL story.

• Spoken on panels and in classes about their work and life experiences

• Shared their PEL stories on video and in print to help Eckerd PEL publicize the program 

• Worked with ASPEC and other committees at Eckerd on community projects and initiatives

• Met to consider ways to provide Eckerd PEL alumni with networking opportunities and other resources

PEL Porch Party: June 2016, PEL Alumni Ambassadors helped organize a gathering at Lewis House on the main campus to welcome newly graduated students from the Class of 2016 into the ranks of PEL Alumni.

PEL Porch Party in June 2016

Want to become involved as a PEL Alumni Ambassador? Contact Donna Littell at litteldj@eckerd edu or visit the alumni page at https://www.eckerd.edu/pel/alumni/

Alumni College: Ready to get back to class? Our Alumni College program offers PEL courses to Eckerd College alumni at a reduced rate of $300 per class (for most classes).

Alumni College is a great way to add a major or a minor to your degree, pursue professional development credits at a reasonable cost, or take individual classes just for fun. You will also be helping others because when you enroll, a portion of your tuition is a scholarship donation (and a charitable tax deduction).
Learn more about this great opportunity for professional development or personal fulfillment.