Biennial Black Alumni Summit Engages Theme of “People. Passion. Impact.”

Gregory Burrill (C’96) had to think carefully about coming back to campus for the Black Alumni Summit (BAS) in September. He’s a substitute teacher in Portland, Oregon, so attending would require sacrifices. He’s happy he came. “I was moved by the quality of the content and events,” he says. “I was wowed.”

The third biennial Black Alumni Summit drew almost 240 Black Hoyas from all classes and schools to reconnect with each other and the university. The summit featured programming with alumni experts on topics of importance to the Black community, networking opportunities and lots of time to socialize and make new connections.

“I’d never been in as big a group of interesting and powerful Black people before,” Burrill says. “People who are doing big things.”

The summit’s theme was “Passion. Purpose. Impact.” It formed the backbone for eight panel discussions on topics ranging from mass incarceration and prison reform to the benefits of executive coaching and emerging technologies. There was even an opening panel called “What Does It Mean to Be a Hoya?”

“What’s so special about the Black Alumni Summit is a special sense of community that’s reinforced,” says Mannone Butler (B’94, L’99), BAS co-chair. “We are able to share our diverse experiences in ways that are important and impactful,” she adds.

“The big take-away from the Black Alumni Summit was a call to action about engaging this community,” says Eric Woods (B’91), BAS co-founder and co-chair. “Georgetown is our home, and it is our responsibility as Black alumni to engage and steward that relationship.”

Butler says that there is a hunger among Black alums to connect, a belief supported by first-time attendee Gregory Burrill. “I always hoped to deepen my Georgetown connection, and the summit did that,” he says. “I plan to attend my 25th reunion as well.”