Minutes of Executive Committee meeting, October 18, 2004

Present: Amanda Pullinger, Erin Burns, Helen Lawson, Michael Boyd, Rupa Aniogi, Leslie Teicholz, Guy Spier, Rob McWilliams, Joseph Lau, Deborah Shapiro

1. Financial Report (Lau)

Net account balance is approximately $1580. This balance does not reflect some events payments that were made through Acteva, which often has a lag time of 4-6 weeks.

2. Membership Renewals (Pullinger)

Some new members have joined the Association as a result of receiving the newsletter. Discussion was had about mailing letters to recruit additional members as this is cost effective and draws a greater response than the newsletter.

3. Organizational Issues (Spier, Boyd)

Discussion was had about exploring ways to develop a network of organizations that could benefit from the Association’s non-profit status and/or the newsletter. Nancy Kenny, Michael Boyd, Joann Barbieri, and Hamilton Hess will meet with Dan Gore from San Diego to discuss some of these issues. Kenny has stated that the University may get involved to some degree and will need to determine what resources to invest. Discussion was had about the need to control the use of the identity and logo.

4. Recent Events (Pullinger, McWilliams, Lau, Spier, Aniogi)

a. Thomas Pink- turnout was approximately 100 people and the store was thrilled with the event.

b. Fresher’s Party- a small, but very well appreciated event. The freshers were asked to let us know at the end of term what additional information would have been helpful.

c. Dinner in Connecticut- turnout was approximately 25 people (100% of those who said they would attend). McWilliams discussed following up with emails and assembling a core group to organize 3-4 events per year. The Connecticut group would be part of, not an alternative to, the Association.

d. Morrell’s wine tasting- turnout was approximately 30 people, including members of business school associations. Morrell’s expressed interest in hosting future events.

e. Golf outing- a foursome, comprised of Oxford and Cambridge alumni played golf in Tuxedo, New York and agreed to donate the $200 prize to the winning school, which was Cambridge.

f. Young Alumni- turnout at the last event was approximately 55 people. Aniogi discussed organizing a Thanksgiving dinner, smaller get togethers (e.g., groups of 4-5 people gathering at a coffee shop), and finding a way to identify members at large events (e.g., wearing bracelets).

5. Event Planning

a. Christmas Card get-together, November 29- members of the Committee will gather to socialize and write cards to members and other individuals in the database.

b. Boat Race- discussion was had about organizing an Oxford-Cambridge boat race to be held in the spring, possibly on the same day as the Boat Race Dinner. Spier met with John Tepper Marlin regarding the dinner. Spier and Marlin discussed having the Association get involved with the organization of the event. Marlin would chair the dinner, select the speaker, and nominate his successor, subject to the Association’s and Cambridge’s veto.

c. Oxford-Cambridge choir series- dates during December-April.

d. Irish Ambassador to the UN- this event will likely be held in January.

e. Monty Python Spam A Lot- Burns discussed organizing this musical event to take place in February or early March.

f. Tennis- discussion was had about organizing a match between Oxford and Cambridge or a demonstration game, followed by cocktails.

g. Young Alumni- Aniogi discussed organizing an event 1-2 weeks after the New Year.

6. Financial Times (McWilliams)

The FT has agreed to allow the Association to produce a color version of the newsletter at the FT’s corporate rate.

7. Advisory Board (Spier)

Spier discussed allowing each Executive Committee and Board member to invite 1 person to participate on the Advisory Board. The Advisory Board member’s term would extend throughout the sponsor’s tenure on the Executive Committee or Board of Directors. All nominees would be subject to veto by the Executive Committee and Board members.

8. Other Business

The minutes of the July 28 meeting were approved.

Posted by Paula Hoare at 08:29 PM | Permalink

WELCOME MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
Welcome to the web site of the Oxford Alumni Association of New York (OAANY). The OAANY was founded a decade ago as a forum for alumni and friends of the University of Oxford who reside in the tri-state area of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

The OAANY's goals are:

The membership of the OAANY is primarily comprised of people who have matriculated as members of the University of Oxford, but we also welcome individuals who have a serious interest in the affairs of the University and in furthering its ideals.

From September through June each year the Association organizes presentations as part of our Distinguished Speaker Series and a whole range of social events which we believe will be of interest to alumni and friends of the University. Given the natural diversity of our members' backgrounds and occupations, there is no limit to the range of events held and subjects covered by our speakers - from foreign affairs to business, from literature to economics and from wine tastings to networking receptions.

We are always on the lookout for new event ideas and new speakers to address the Association. Very often our presenters will have an Oxford connection, either being alumni themselves or being associated in some capacity with the University, but this is certainly not an absolute requirement.

One of the major benefits of involvement with the OAANY is the opportunity to meet and mingle with other alumni and friends of Oxford University. The Oxford alumni in the tri-state area are an amazing group of people, involved in every conceivable sphere of activity at every possible level. Oxford alumni in this area include the predictable range of lawyers, investment bankers, management consultants, professors and graduate students. However, they also include entrepreneurs, models, doctors, priests, UN executives, volunteers, those involved in the non-profit world and a wide range of alumni working in the Arts, publishing and the media. It is a truly diverse group, yet we have all shared the amazing Oxford experience. One of the OAANY's major goals is to enable Oxford alumni to interact with one another - to mix, mingle, and network in as wide a variety of settings as possible. We hope you will take advantage of these opportunities to expand your personal and professional networks with other Oxford alumni.

From time to time the OAANY organizes joint events with selected other organizations. These events allow Oxford alumni to interact with others who share similar interests or who have had similar experiences. The British Universities and Business Schools Alumni Networking Receptions are good examples of this type of event. We have also held joint events with Cambridge in America, the New York LSE alumni group, the English-Speaking Union, the Harvard Club, the Yale Club, the Williams Club, Columbia University, New York University, Wharton Business School and a number of other US and UK alumni groups.

If you would like to become more involved in the OAANY, I encourage you to consider joining the OAANY's Executive Committee. This group meets about once a month to plan events and formulate strategy for the organization. Joining the Executive Committee provides leadership and networking opportunities, as well as the far more important opportunity to have fun with fellow alumni! Involvement with the OAANY also allows you to do something that benefits Oxford and other alumni. There are many ways in which alumni assist the OAANY, including suggesting a speaker, helping to plan an event, providing space for an event, liaising with the OAANY's Advisory Board and so on. Please e-mail us at info@oxalumny.org if you would like to join us for our next Executive Committee meeting.

Please take a few moments to browse through our site and then feel free to contact me at info@oxalumny.org with questions or suggestions. This is your alumni organization and we want to ensure that it is responsive to your needs and ideas. I look forward to meeting with as many alumni as possible in the coming season and hope that we can enjoy the camaraderie that comes from our shared experiences at Oxford, be they last year or 60 years ago!

Guy Spier (BNC 1984)
President

Posted by Paula Hoare at 07:08 PM | Permalink