Isaiah Johnson, Managing Editor

Each year hundreds of SpelHouse alumni return to their alma mater, to reconnect with friends and reminisce on their time spent in the Atlanta University Center. Homecoming is a joyous time where current and former students are all in one space, sharing stories, ideas, and forming lifetime connections. Though homecoming is primarily for the alumni, current students of each institution should take advantage of the high volume of alumni on campus. Networking with alumni from your institution can benefit individuals in various ways, here’s a list of what current students can do to network during homecoming.

1. Reach out to your alumni association for events: Aside from Saturday where students will see the most alumni on campus, reach out to your school’s alumni association to see if events are being held during the week. See if these events are open to students and what time the event takes place. These events may happen off campus so make sure you ask where the event is happening.

2. See if campus organizations are having alumni events: If you are a part of a campus organization ask the president/chief if there are any alum that work closely with your org. If so, ask if there’s a way that the organization can hold the event where the alum(s) come in and speak with the students. That way the students are able to form a connection with.

3. Ask your department chair if there’s major specific events: For those looking to network specifically in their major, ask your department chair if there’s any networking events that the department holds during the week. You can also ask your chair if there’s a way to get alum to come in and speak in their major related classes. In most cases your department chair is an alum of the school, which means there can be more networking opportunities for students.

4.Network with the alumni on the day of homecoming: If you’re unable to do any of these previous options listed above, there’s still an opportunity for you to network, tailgate is where you will see the highest presence of SpelHouse alumni. Giving you the opportunity to speak with alumni from various classes, speaking to the alumni doesn’t have to be an elaborate process, if you find yourself waiting and line to get food try to spark up a simple conversation. A good opener is how their tailgate is going?

5. Be yourself, but make sure its professional: If you happen to find yourself at an alumni event or trying to speak to an alumni during tailgate remember to just be yourself. However, be respectful to the person if they don’t want to talk. Some people may not want to spend their time networking with students, so it’s best to respect their space. If you do encounter someone that is willing to talk, you can be casual, make eye contact with the person and thank them for taking the time to have a conversation with you.

Networking is an important tool that people will use at various points in their life, the earlier you start it the better. So, I encourage current students this homecoming to utilize these suggestions and network with alumni. Doing this can have a tremendous pay-off in the long run, it just takes a matter of taking the first step.