Alumni Association Records, 1839-present

The history of the Alumni Association of Oberlin College falls into three phases that roughly parallel the dates of the Association's constitutions: 1839-1920, 1920-1970, and 1970 to date.

The Association of the Alumni of the Oberlin Collegiate Institute (one of the first worldwide alumni associations in the United States) was founded in 1839 "to cultivate and strengthen friendly feeling among its members. . . ."  To this end the Association met annually at Commencement to elect officers, hear speakers, and choose the orator who would address the next annual meeting.  The Association conducted no formal activities during these early years, but the Alumni did attempt to recruit potential students and raise funds for the College.  Until 1845, membership was by application only (after that date it became automatic) and included just graduates of the Collegiate branch until 1890 when students from the Theology School were admitted.

The Alumni Association has always had a quasi-independent relationship with Oberlin College.  In these early years, the Association was quite independent, but in the last quarter of the nineteenth century it began to elect six members annually to the Board of Trustees of the College.  They also created the first of what would be many committees on the relationship of alumni to the College to seek closer ties.  Alumni assistance to the college in this period was on an individual basis--there were no formal alumni solicitations at this juncture.

The turn of the century saw efforts to organize the alumni through official alumni clubs, class letters, and the creation of the Alumni Magazine.  Under the auspices of the Alumni Magazine Publishing Company, the Magazine began as a separate entity from both the College and the Alumni Association.  This company published the Magazine from 1905 until 1921 when the Association took over responsibility.  The Magazine contained class notes, faculty articles, notes from the college president, and other material of interest to alumni.

At this time, too, greater efforts were made to involve the alumni in the financial support of the College.  Class gifts were instituted and the Living Endowment Union was begun.

In 1920, a new constitution radically changed the Alumni Association; its organization became more structured and it became more active in soliciting member involvement in the promotion of Oberlin's interests.  The administrative management of the Association was vested in an elected Alumni Council which replaced the earlier executive committee.  Among the many activities of this period are: awarding of the Alumni Medal to someone who had provided outstanding service to the College, studying Alumni attitudes toward Oberlin, establishing the Glen Gray Scholarship to assist needy students with athletic potential, and initiating the Alumni Fund which would become an annual solicitation.

To assist the Alumni Council and oversee the activities of the Association, including the Alumni Fund and the Alumni Magazine, a full time Secretary of the Alumni Association was appointed in 1921 (By 1957, this title had changed to Executive Director of the Alumni Association.)  The role of the Association Secretary grew substantially over the years.  The director and his staff now oversee the execution of the many projects developed for alumni: annual meetings, homecoming, reunions, class letters.  All the planning and preparation is carried out by the on campus Alumni Association office.

Throughout the second half of the twentieth century, the Alumni Association became more involved with College affairs through various Alumni Association committees, including the Committee on Admissions and the Committee on Academic Affairs.  Alumni focused on student life and how the College responded to student issues and attitudes.

In 1945, yet another constitution was approved.  This one created the Alumni Council and established a system of elections that assured a balance of men and women from all alumni generations among the fifteen elected at-large members of the Council.  Between the 1940s and 1960s, new programs were developed and efforts made to strengthen the class and club programs in the never ending effort to involve alumni in the Association's activities.  Among the innovations of this era were: the Alumni College and Career Counseling.

Since the late 1960s, further change has come to the Alumni Association.  It has lost its quasi-independent status and many of its functions.  By 1961, all of the Association's bookkeeping was performed by the Controller of the College.  With mechanical operation of the Alumni Fund transferred to the Development Office, the Association formally left the fund-raising business.  In 1985, the Alumni Magazine became a product of the Office of Communication.  All operational funding for the Association now comes from the College and hiring and office procedures are managed like any other department of the College.  The 1970 constitution saw the elimination of all elected officers except the president who can appoint other officers at his discretion.  New programs begun in the 1970s include sponsoring winter term projects, Alumni in Service to Oberlin College (ASOC), and Commencement.

In 1984, the Alumni Association approved a fifth constitution.  This constitution removed even more structure from the Association's governing building.  The elected alumni board was replaced by "a large self-selected, free-wheeling alumni council" drawn from volunteers among class officers, club members and others.