The Association of Former Students
 |
|
| Formation | 1879 |
|---|---|
| Type | Alumni association |
| Headquarters | College Station, Texas, United States |
|
Membership
|
640,000+ |
|
President and CEO
|
Porter S. Garner III '79 |
|
Key people
|
Kathryn Greenwade, Vice President; Cecilee Herd, Vice President; Marty Holmes, Vice President; Barbara Kasper, Vice President; and Ron Spies, Vice President and CFO |
| Website | AggieNetwork.com |
The Association of Former Students is the official alumni association of Texas A&M University and operates as a 501 (c)(3) organization. The Association recognizes over 640,000 people as part of the Aggie Network and oversees 244 clubs worldwide. Known to Aggies as simply The Association, the group is dedicated to promoting the interests and welfare of Texas A&M University, perpetuating ties of affection and esteem that students formed during their college days, and serving the current student body.
The Association facilitates numerous programs aimed at connecting the worldwide Texas A&M community, such as Class Reunions, A&M Clubs, the Aggie Ring program, the publication of the Texas Aggie magazine, and 'Find an Aggie' database that is housed on The Association's website, AggieNetwork.com.
The Association was established on June 26, 1879, when 11 former cadets hosted a reception in Houston initiating the first formal organization of A&M former students. In 1888, the Ex-Cadets Association was reorganized to form the Alumni Association. In the mid-1890s, E.P. Cushing founded Alpha Phi to "work for the upbuilding of the college." Cushing chose to contact all 3,000 former students of the college, rather than just the 300 students who had received degrees. As a result, the term "former student" is used in lieu of "alumnus" or "ex-Aggie" (keeping with tradition that "once an Aggie, always an Aggie").
A coalition was formed between the A&M Alumni Association and Alpha Phi Fraternity in 1919 to form “The Association of Former Students.”
Lacking a permanent location on the A&M campus, the Alumni Association created a fundraising campaign to erect a YMCA-Alumni Memorial Building in 1910. Although this building was dedicated on February 15, 1915, the Y never was home to the Alumni Association. Instead, the Alumni Association forfeited the building to Texas A&M to provide space for the campus's growth. In 1987, The Association constructed its first free-standing building, the Clayton W. Williams, Jr. Alumni Center, and the long series of temporary locations ended.
From 1947 to 1964, Dick Hervey was the executive secretary of the association. Under his leadership, the first computerized database, the university archives, and the "Distinguished Alumnus Award", which Hervey himself received in 1988, were all established. Hervey was also the mayor of College Station from 1971 to 1974.
In 2008, the Alumni Center was enhanced to better use the facility as an exhibit of the “powerful story of Texas A&M and Texas Aggies”. The building was rededicated in the fall of 2009. The newly remodeled building houses six interactive exhibits: Traditions, Spirit, Muster, Memories, Legacy and Network. Each exhibit allows the visitor to experience different aspects of what it is like to be an Aggie.
...
Wikipedia