Summer 2021 SAB Newsletter

Summer 2021

TODAY

SAB

K-State SAB alumni newsletter

We need your feedback! Check out the third page of this newsletter for a brief survey!

SAB is adopting an exciting project!

The Senior Sidewalk is on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive just east of the Alumni Center.

BY LASONDRA AURAND VICE PRESIDENT OF ADMINISTRATION

The K-State Senior Sidewalk will now be under the jurisdiction of the SAB. While this program has been implemented for more than 20 years at K-State, Student Foundation decided it was time to let another group take over. The Senior Sidewalk is located on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, on the east side of the Alumni Center and Berney Family Welcome Center. The walk

consists of granite bricks that say the graduate’s name, college, and graduation year.

These bricks can be bought by, or in honor of, any student that has graduated in the past five years with their first degree. They are $150 and tax-deductible! The money that SAB will be making off the bricks will then be put back into SAB to sponsor our projects, including CASE ASAP Conference. SAB will also be awarding part of those funds to student organizations. A student organization can apply through

a grant process. An SAB committee will evaluate the grants using a rubric and award the funds the following semester.

Once the student organization completes their project, they will be required to send documentation of impact and completion to SAB. SAB will also be building a webpage through the Alumni Association’s communications department to show the impact of the grants. It’s a big task to get done in the coming year, but the SAB committee is up for the challenge.

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PRESIDENT’S CORNER [ FROM THE OUTGOING PRESIDENT ] Ariana Coker ’21

It’s hard to believe that this school year and my time as a part of Student Alumni Board are already coming to a close. SAB has been an important part of my college experience the past three years and I am thankful for all that it has given me. From attending the CASE ASAP conference in Louisville to having the opportunity to sit on the Alumni Association’s board of directors this year, SAB has provided some of my favorite college experiences.

Looking back on the year, the fall 2020 semester began with us not sure how everything would proceed. We didn’t know what events we would be able to put on or how we would do meetings. Through all of the uncertainty, SAB has continued to show up and demonstrate the passion for K-State that we all possess. Our meetings proceeded via Zoom, but we were able to close our 2020 with an in-person holiday party. Grad

Breakfast, put on for December graduates, proceeded as a drive-thru event. Graduates drove through the east side of the Alumni Center to pick up a to-go breakfast, goodie bag, and enter into drawings.

One highlight of our year was welcoming a new advisor, Tamie Redding ’86. Tamie has been instrumental in helping us adjust to the changes that this year has brought. I am excited to see where SAB can go under her direction.

The spring semester kicked off with a return to in-person meetings at the Alumni Center, something that all of us were looking forward to. In February, we welcomed Dr. Jamie Ball ’10 and Kristine Larson Davis ’15, the recipients of our Distinguished Young Alumni award. Both have made significant contributions to their field and we were so happy to have the chance to learn from them through their keynotes.

The SAB application cycle proceeded as normal this spring thanks to our Vice President of

Membership Mary Clare. Ten phenomenal new members were welcomed into SAB. Unfortunately, we were not able to host the For Sophomores Only program this spring but look forward to it continuing it in the future.

One new program that we have been hard at work on is the Senior Sidewalk, which we inherited in the summer of 2020. Senior Sidewalk is a dedication sidewalk in front of the Alumni Center and the Berney Family Welcome Center. There are exciting things coming for this program!

As I transition to an alumna of K-State, I look forward to maintaining connections with the Alumni Association and SAB. This organization is in great hands with all of our members and under the leadership of our new president, Megan Klug. I am excited to watch all that SAB accomplishes in the next year and the future. Thanks to SAB and the Alumni Association for everything!

each member to feel actively involved in SAB. By setting personal goals and expectations of what each member wants to get out of SAB, I think we can ensure that SAB is a positive and beneficial experience for everyone.

In the upcoming year, there are many different initiatives we hope to grow and further develop. SAB will be developing the Senior Sidewalk program and providing more structure to the timeline of the grant. Another area that we are hoping to grow is Wildcats Forever. With membership down during COVID, we hope to increase members and retention.

Additionally, we hope to re-engage and

strengthen our relations with K-State Alumni. Lastly, we want to connect with prospective students and share the K-State culture with them.

Our executive team is excited and passionate about continuing to grow and further develop SAB. We look forward to getting back in the Alumni Center and making the most of the upcoming year.

We know there will be challenges as we come back from pandemic restrictions and there are a lot of things we want to accomplish, but there is no doubt we can do it and be successful in our endeavors. I am looking forward to a great year!

Go ’Cats!

[ FROM THE INCOMING PRESIDENT ] Megan Klug

Hello all! It has been a whirlwind of a year to say the least, but we are all incredibly grateful for the strides closer to normalcy. I am beyond excited to be serving as president of Student Alumni Board this upcoming year. As we shift back to in-person meetings and getting to talk to each other without masks on (FINALLY!), my hope for this next year is to boost morale and increase engagement. Over Zoom, it is hard to truly feel connected or involved in any organization. As we begin to step away from our computers, it is my goal for

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SAB Alumni Spotlight

BY LASONDRA AURAND VICE PRESIDENT OF ADMINISTRATION

Bev Biggs McKittrick ’82 will be SAB Alumni’s very first spotlight member!

Bev helped found Student Alumni Board when she was a K-State student herself.

Getting to be one of the first members, as well as the first president, is one of her most special memories about her time in SAB. Incidentally, she actually recruited one of her friends to be in SAB with her, and that man became her husband, Richard!

Together, they have four children, a couple of whom became SAB members themselves.

Being able to come back to Manhattan to visit her kids and attend football games has been a joy to Bev and her family. She has enjoyed getting to watch SAB grow and continue to be successful. She also appreciates SAB students getting to participate in the

Wabash CannonBall Kansas City, as she was on the committee for the annual event for many years.

If Bev could give advice to current members, it would be this: “Embrace K-State and appreciate the multitude of connections through classes and activities.”

Building relationships is such an important aspect of college living, and friendships made in college can last a lifetime. Bev encourages students to join K-State alumni groups upon graduation, as they are fulfilling and fun. Current members would like to say thank you to Bev for helping get SAB off the ground and for continuing to be an active alumna throughout the years.

Go ’Cats!

“Embrace K-State and appreciate the multitude of connections through classes and activities.”

-BEV BIGGS MCKITTRICK ’82 SAB welcomes new adviser Hello SAB Alumni, my name is Tamie Redding ’86, the assistant director of student programs. For those that don’t know me, I previously worked at the Alumni Association for 10 years with three former SAB advisors, Andrea, Megan, and Amanda. Those years allowed me to get to know a lot of great SAB alumni. I have missed it, and I’m so thankful to be back.

We are excited to hold our events in person this coming year! It’s crazy but only five of our current members have ever experienced a typical SAB event! This group of SAB’ers is so impressive and I am excited to see how these 29 students charge into the fall semester. They have set some great goals, have committees selected and are willing to make it happen.

If you are in Manhattan, please stop by; Andrea, Jessica, and I would love to see you and catch up.

SAB ALUMNI SURVEY “The survey below is way to get a perspective of how SAB alumni want to try to connect with current SAB’ers. Our vision is to host a future event where SAB alumni can reunite with other SAB alumni as well as current members. Examples include specific events that are coordinated directly with Open House/For Sophomores Only so past alumni have the opportunity to share their perspective of a K-State alumni or events such as a tailgate before a football game, a night in the ’Ville and even formal banquet. Filling out this survey helps SAB begin the process of building that stronger bridge between our alumni and us.”

JEFF EBECK VICE PRESIDENT FOR EXTERNAL PROGRAMMING

Take the survey with the link below: https://bit.ly/SABNewsletter-Summer-2021 [3]

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Welcome Congratulations to the following 10 new members, SAB class of 2021.

For a list of all SAB members, visit k-state.com/SAB.

Congrats Congratulations to our new alumni of 2021! We have a great group of talented alum ready to take on the next chapter and we are excited to see them shine.

• Colleen Fulton, freshman in psychology, Loup City, Nebraska • Emily Howard, freshman in accounting, Eudora, Kansas • Hailey Hower, sophomore in organizational management, Council Grove, Kansas • Curtis Niehues, sophomore in biochemistry, Holton, Kansas • Morgan Phillips, sophomore in animal science and industry, Washington, Kansas • Grace Reiman, junior in apparel and textile marketing, Leawood, Kansas • Lina Sattarin, sophomore in journalism and mass communications, Olathe, Kansas • Caleb Stout, freshman in agricultural economics, Cottonwood Falls, Kansas • Caroline Turk, freshman in communications, Leawood, Kansas • Samantha Walker, junior in communications, Charlotte, North Carolina

• Sam Bond, human development and family science/gerontology, Olathe, Kansas • Allison Burnett, biology/pre-vet med, Olathe, Kansas • Jack Cashman, mechanical engineering, Lenexa, Kansas • Sydney Clements, chemical engineering, Salina, Kansas • Ariana Coker, life, sciences and gerontology/pre-med, Shawnee, Kansas • Chaz Corredor, financial management, Shawnee, Kansas • Sophie Craig, microbiology/pre-med, Gardner, Kansas • Morgan Elliott, human development and family science, Keller, Texas • Emma Francis, biology/pre-medicine, Topeka, Kansas • Ali Karamali, chemical engineering, pre-law, Overland Park • Olivia Pruss, human health biology and Spanish, Olathe, Kansas • Trent Schroeder, life science/pre-dentistry, Stillwell, Kansas • Tel Wittmer, secondary education, Holton, Kansas

2021-22 Officers

President | Megan Klug Vice President of Recruitment | Reagan Riley Vice President of Development | Grace Vogeln Vice President of Internal Programming | Mikayla Adkins Vice President of External Programming | Jeff Ebeck Vice President of Marketing | Bennett Shipley Vice President of Administration | Vedant Kulkarni

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