Westmont Magazine A Westmont Community for Life

A New Online Tool, Westmont Connect, Will Forge Stronger Relationships Among Westmont Alumni Worldwide.

When alumni said they wanted Westmont to become a more vital present-day resource for their personal and professional lives, the Office of Alumni and Parent Relations listened. For the past year, the college has worked to create a vehicle for alumni of all eras to connect with each other in dynamic, relevant and timely ways.
Westmont Connect, a new, interactive online tool that exclusively targets Westmont alumni, debuts this summer.The social connection site will help build and maintain personal and professional relationships among former Westmont students whatever their age and location. Members of the college community will be able to interact with each other seamlessly and easily at any time.

Looking for a classmate from 15 years ago? Seeking professional connections in the Westmont community during a job search? Westmont Connect will allow alumni to access information such as this and build relationships from anywhere in the world. The goal of Westmont Connect is enabling alumni to interact with each other in ways that meet their specific individual needs and interests throughout the many phases of their lives.

Several college departments have joined together in this project. Teri Bradford Rouse ’77, senior director of alumni and parent relations, has worked closely with the Alumni Council, which first envisioned Westmont Connect. Reed Sheard, vice president for college advancement and chief information officer, has led the development of the online tool, and Institutional Technology has played an important role.

Alumni can access Westmont Connect from their computers, iPhones, iPads or Android devices. Its many features will allow alumni to do a variety of things:

• Use it as an online alumni directory

• Search for fellow alumni by personal interests

• Search for jobs that Westmont alumni offer in their areas

• Post job opportunities in their companies

• Celebrate successes and share stories online with fellow alumni

• See and connect with fellow alumni who live in their areas

• When they move, notify alumni living in the new area about their arrival

• Locate a church in their areas that fellow alumni attend

• Search for alumni in their areas who offer services as electricians, lawyers, dentists, business owners, etc.

• Link to Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn

• Locate alumni on a GPS-enabled map

• Reach out to fellow alumni in their area who may be interested in activities such as book clubs and Bible studies

The Office of Alumni and Parent Relations will continue to organize face-to-face activities such as Homecoming, events on campus and regional chapter meetings throughout the country. Important gatherings like these will remain a major component of the alumni office’s outreach. Westmont Connect will provide an additional dimension of service and easy access to valuable resources for alumni.
“Westmont Connect will open up an exciting world of connections among alumni who share a love for their alma mater,” says Teri Bradford Rouse.

For more information about Westmont Connect, please check the alumni office website, www.westmont.edu/alumni.