This year, I organized the senior banquet for all five InterVarsity chapters and we make it a really big deal. We typically hold it during finals week and get a good turnout. The Catholic center on campus has a great basement room that they’ve lent to us for free. Our area team budget sponsors a catered meal from a local Thai restaurant and then I’ve asked alumni and donors to donate desserts and drinks. I send out an Evite, with staff reinforcements, inviting the seniors and telling them it’s a semi-formal affair. I ask them to bring their checkbook if they’d be willing to write a check for $2 to IV. We decorate the room with tablecloths, candles, and table decorations.
After some time for them to eat and enjoy each other, we have a program. We invite a bunch of alumni back, which is fun for them to see their friends. The alumni sit with the seniors, and they are part of the program. They also help with setup and clean up. Usually, I have one alumni couple share some tips for life after college, with some of its realities and challenges. Then we have about five alumni on a panel discussion to answer relevant questions. Finally, a staff or donor asks for partnership on three levels – prayer, service and financial. Then we have them write checks and fill out the graduating senior forms. I also give out all the free stuff from IV and a senior dinner packet full of info, plus a book like Following Jesus in the Real World. One other unrealized goal is to have a google doc running where they can all enter in their names, contact info and area of the country they’re moving to, so they can connect with each other in the future (if they attend different chapters, they might not know each other). Then they hang out and take lots of photos together. It’s been really fun and we’ve gotten about 30-40 seniors total each year. It’s a big investment of staff time and money, but I think it’s worth it.
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The Greek IV story was shared by Emery Silva Author Website: http://nugreekiv.wordpress.com Author Email: Contact Author Author Bio: Emery is a campus staff with Greek InterVarsity at Northwestern University. More Stories by Emery Silva |
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This post is tagged Alumni, Graduation, Seniors
