Past Events

On Thursday, September 4, the OAANY arranged for a group of Oxford alumni and their guests to attend the U.S. Open Tennis Championships at the USTA National Tennis Center in Queens. We were again fortunate with the weather, as the rain which had been plaguing the Championships all week finally stopped and allowed us to see an evening of tennis. Given the schedule changes occasioned by the weather, there were a large number of different matches being played on various courts, so event attendees had a wide choice of tennis games to enjoy throughout the evening. Look for a return visit next year!

The OAANY was delighted to host a talk and book signing by Professor Ferguson in September. The OAANY has a long tradition of bringing preeminent Oxford professors and other British academics to Oxford alumni in New York, allowing alumni to reconnect with the best of current academic thinking on a wide range of issues and to interact one on one with various Oxford professors and other leading British academics.

Professor Niall Ferguson is an acclaimed author, prolific commentator on contemporary politics and widely regarded as Britain's most talented young historian. His latest book Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and the Lessons for Global Power is controversial for its defense of the British Empire and highly topical for the lessons Ferguson seeks to draw for present day America. Niall Ferguson is a Visiting Professor of History at Oxford University and the Herzog Professor of Financial History at the Stern School of Business, New York University. He is a frequent political commentator on radio and television, where his series on the British Empire recently aired on Britain's Channel 4. In addition, he has written for numerous newspapers and magazines, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post and the New Republic.

Professor Ferguson's talk drew a large and enthusiastic audience, which filled the room to capacity and spilled over into the next room. After the talk and a lively question and answer session, all event attendees were invited to mingle and chat with Professor Ferguson and other guests at the post-talk reception. Professor Ferguson also signed copies of his new book. We were pleased to be able to invite members of the English-Speaking Union to enjoy this evening with us. Please click here to see pictures of this event.

The OAANY secured a block of discounted tickets for Oxford alumni and their guests to hear the New York Collegium, an ensemble of players and singers dedicated to the music of the Baroque era (1600-1750), featuring historically authentic instruments and performance techniques. The Collegium performed in the sumptuous setting of the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola under the direction of Oxford alumnus Andrew Parrott. We heard the Collegium perform Claudio Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610, a landmark work of the Baroque period, with a dozen solo singers and a full instrumental ensemble (including cornetts and sackbuts).

On a sunny Saturday afternoon in October a group of Oxford alumni and their guests took a multi-ethnic walking tour through the Jewish neighborhood of the Lower East Side, Chinatown, Little Italy, and what used to be called Little Germany, Little Ireland, and Little Africa. Our tour was led by a guide from Big Onion Walking Tours, which has organized innovative and exciting tours through New York's ethnic neighborhoods and historic districts since 1991. Big Onion Walking Tours is known for guides who emphasize the history of the areas visited.

The Oxford Alumni Association of New York was delighted to host Youssef Nasr on Wednesday, October 22, just days before he took up a new position with HSBC as Group General Manager South America and President of HSBC Bank Brasil. At the time of his presentation to us, Youssef Nasr was President and Chief Executive Officer of HSBC USA, and also served as an HSBC Group General Manager, where he oversaw all group business activities in the United States, Mexico and Central America. HSBC Bank USA is the 11th largest commercial bank by assets and has more than 400 branches in New York State. The HSBC Group, headquartered in London, has over 9,500 offices in 79 countries and territories and is one of the world's largest banking and financial services organizations. After graduating from Cambridge and obtaining his MBA from Harvard, Mr. Nasr joined the HSBC Group and held a succession of executive positions in New York, London, Toronto and Vancouver.

Thanks to the generous assistance of HSBC, we were able to hold this evening in the very elegant environs of HSBC's Executive Dining Room. The evening began with a cocktail reception and butlered hors d'oeuvres. Oxford alumni and their guests networked with one another and with graduates of Columbia Business School, whom we invited to join us for this event. Mr. Nasr gave a brief presentation and then participated in a lengthy, engaging and very substantive discussion of financial services, management and other issues. Mr. Nasr fielded questions from a large number of people in the engaged audience, many of whom were involved in the financial services industry. The reception continued after the talk and question and answer session. All event attendees were able to mingle and chat with each other and with Mr. Nasr, allowing the lively exchange of views to continue in a more informal setting. Please click here to see pictures from this event.

On Thursday, November 6, the OAANY continued the tradition of the British Universities and Business Schools Alumni Networking Receptions which we initiated at the British Consulate-General last February. We had received excellent feedback after the last such Reception, so we were not surprised that this was another sell out event. Oxford alumni and their guests were again joined by alumni from Cambridge, the London Business School, Manchester Business School, the London School of Economics and many other British universities and business schools. This event provided an opportunity for Oxford alumni to meet and network with other professionals from a wide range of businesses and organizations, all of whom had shared the experience of living and studying in the UK. We are again grateful for the continuing hospitality of the British Consulate-General and for their help in organizing this event. Watch out for the next Networking Reception! Please click here to see pictures from this event.

The OAANY's Holiday Party has been a tradition in New York for many years. This time, we moved to a new venue, the comfortably classic and cozy Croton Reservoir Tavern in Midtown. Oxford alumni proved that they are not daunted by a little snow - or in this case, a lot of snow! Despite the terrible weather, a capacity crowd braved the windswept snow and joined us for a casual and relaxed evening of mingling, schmoozing, debating and networking. Alumni from the LSE and Cambridge celebrated the holiday season with us and a good time was had by all! As is usually the case at our social events, alumni and their guests stayed long after the time the event was scheduled to end as they enjoyed meeting new friends and catching up with old ones! Please click here to see pictures from this event.

We were delighted when the OAANY was invited by the National Arts Club for a talk and book signing by Professor Roy Foster on December 9. Roy Foster is Carroll Professor of Irish History at Oxford and a fellow of Hertford College. Professor Foster was in New York in connection with the publication of the final volume in his highly acclaimed biography of W.B. Yeats, one of the world's most fascinating poets. This second volume, published in November 2003, explores the complex poetic, political, and personal intricacies of Yeats's dramatic final decades, a period that saw the Easter Rebellion, the founding of the Irish state in 1922, and the production of Yeats's greatest masterpieces. Professor Foster is the author of numerous books, including Lord Randolph Churchill: A Political Life and Modern Ireland 1600-1972. Knowing that Oxford alumni were attending this event, Professor Foster graciously prepared remarks especially for the occasion, providing a fascinating review of review of W.B. Yeats's association with and relationship with Oxford. After the presentation and questions from the floor, all event attendees were able to mingle and chat with Professor Foster and other guests at a post-talk reception. Professor Foster also signed copies of his book.