Alumni Programs Board ReportMay 2016

What a whirlwind the spring semester has been! It’s very hard to believe that our May meeting is right around the corner. The programs team has been hard at work and has accomplished a lot in a short amount of time.

As a department, we are excited about the new opportunities that several recent changes have brought our way. We have some new faces to introduce to you as well as some new opportunities for some familiar faces that will make us better in several key areas.

We are excited to share lots of updates in our board reports and at the committee meeting in person, but I’ll also give you a few highlights here:

While the basketball team’s run in March ended a little sooner than we all liked, from a KUAA perspective we felt like we hit a home run. Our new home base for the Big 12 Tournament at “No Other Pub” in KC’s Power & Light District could not have turned out better for us in terms of setup and hospitality. Des Moines proved to be our usual Jayhawk stronghold for the opening weekend of the NCAA tournament and despite the selection committee throwing us for a loop and placing us in the Louisville regional, we ended up with a great setup for pregame events with several thousand in attendance. Please see Danny’s report for full details.

On the academic front, Michelle has jumped in nicely to take over managing our campus partnerships. We held several successful events with the Hall Center for the Humanities, School of Business, School of Law, School of Engineering and KU Libraries. We are also looking forward to some great new programs with the Spencer Museum of Art and School of Architecture in the next few weeks. Please see Michelle’s report for more information.

We are excited to announce that student programs are moving from the membership department to the programs department under my direction to free up Teri to focus on some other revenue objectives. You will receive more details at the May meeting, but we have an exciting partnership with KU Endowment in the works that will allow us to invest in students in a way that no one else in the country currently is and reap the benefits of that enhanced relationship once they become alumni.

Finally, after a year of planning the Rock Chalk Ball is finally here! We will have a full recap of the event and our new mobile bidding feature for you at our May meeting and look forward to sharing all of that information with you.

On a staffing note, Kiley Gilmore is our new Assistant Director of Student Programs assuming most of Page’s former responsibilities. We look forward to you all getting the chance to meet her. We are also launching a search for a new hire that will reflect our increased investment in legacy relations working with Joy as well as developing volunteers and programs in some of our large national networks. We hope to have this hire made and the new person start in June.

Thank you, as always, for your leadership in making KUAA such a strong organization that is such a positive resource for KU. We look forward to seeing you in May. Rock Chalk!

Brad Eland, Vice President of Alumni and Student Programs

Campus Partnerships / Awards Programs

In addition to finishing off the 2015-2016 Kansas Honors Program, I have been getting my feet wet with campus partnerships and running our Millie and Wintermote Awards.

As for the awards, the submission period ended at the end of March and we will be working over the coming weeks to comb through the submissions and select the winners for this year.

Not a ton has happened with our campus partnerships since I have been involved but we have a couple of things coming up that are excited to be involved in.

May 19th – Partnering with the School of Architecture to host an alumni reception at the AIA National Convention in Philadelphia

June 6th – Partnering with the College to once again host a reception and dinner for their Mini-College

We are also helping with communications for a couple of events for the School of Journalism, School of Music and the Lied Center. Additionally, we just hosted a great Hall Center event in Wichita called Dance Floor Democracy. We had about 60 alumni attend the dinner and program. KU professor Sherrie Tucker gave an interesting lecture about the Hollywood Canteen.

I’m looking forward to becoming more involved with our campus partners and exploring new and exciting ways to partner with them.

Rock Chalk,

Michelle LangDirector of Alumni Programs

Kansas Honors Program

I am in the process of wrapping up the 45th year of the Kansas Honors Program and can’t help but to reflect back on my last 8 years of running the program. While I have made a number of changes to the program, one thing remains the same. It continues to be one of, if not the best, community outreach programs for the KU Alumni Association. To my knowledge, no other university has anything like it. I’m excited to see where it goes as I pass on the reins.

Since we just held our last 3 programs last week, I don’t yet have all the data necessary to give a year-end wrap up. However, it’s looking to be another good year. We received a few President’s Club level donations and upped our total number of seniors honored to just over 132,000. As for next year, nearly all of the programs have already been scheduled and we will start scheduling in speakers soon.

While the Kansas Honors Program doesn’t see major changes every year, I am constantly evaluating each program to ensure we are doing our best to host quality programs, keep the budget in check and maintain the best efficiency for running the program. I hope to work with our new KHP person to implement a few changes that will continue to improve the program.

As I will be leaving for maternity leave at the beginning of June, I hope to be able to get our new person up to speed as quickly as possible so there is a seamless transition.

Rock Chalk,

Michelle LangDirector of Alumni Programs

KU Alumni Association National Network, International Network & Athletic Programs

May 6-7, 2016

Another school year has come and gone! Before pool season hits, let’s take a look back as this winter/spring.

Our Orange County Network hosted its first networking happy hour hosted by Allan Stearns, a KU grad and VP at Lockton Companies. This will be a quarterly event in Costa Mesa focused on business networking for Jayhawks in the middle of their careers.

We hosted our 8th annual Palm Desert reception at the home of Missy & Kent McCarthy. We had our largest turnout of the event with over 70 Jayhawks and we look forward to only growing this tradition in future years.

We’ve reworked our strategy with the KU Libraries and the KU 150 events. We now add the KU 150 archives exhibit with an existing event. We found that the archive wasn’t getting the turnout as a stand-alone event, we expected but pairing with another event has worked well. Our Chicago network hosted a Beer Tasting at Renegade Brewing with the KU 150 archive and we had over 60 attendees that enjoyed the social and educational event.

Our national networks also teamed up with professional teams to offer KU events. We did events this winter/spring with: Brooklyn Nets, Sacramento Kings, Seattle Sounders, Oakland A’s and the Seattle Mariners.

During our Panama Canal & Costa Rica Flying Jayhawks trip we hosted a reception with our 30+ Jayhawks onboard and 10 local alumni. Tegan was the host for this trip and we received a ton of positive feedback from alumni on the trip and our local alumni. We will continue to host these as they make sense.

We teamed up with KU Athletics to host Football in February events with Coach Beaty in Wichita, Topeka and Kansas City. The events were a huge success. This summer we will host events in Tulsa, Phoenix, Garden City and two other locations in Western Kansas.

Road pregame events for men’s basketball were hosted @TCU, @Baylor, @OU and @Texas.

NCAA Tournament: 1st and 2nd Rounds we were in Des Moines at the Iowa Events Center next to the arena. We had 2,000 people attend the events that weekend. The Sweet 16 and Elite 8 were in Louisville (not where we expected to be). We had 3,500 people attend our events that weekend.

On May 17 we will host our annual tailgate event with KU Athletics at the KU vs Wichita State baseball game in Wichita and expect another great crowd as always.

The KU Kickoff event at Corinth Square in Kansas City will be on August 26 featuring Heath, Coach Beaty, Chancellor Gray-Little, and Dr. Zenger to wrap up the summer and welcome a new football season and school year.

Thank you for your support!Danny Lewis Director of Alumni Programs

KU Alumni AssociationCoordinator of Alumni Programs Report-Board of Directors

May 2016

Greetings from the Hill! It is nearly impossible to believe that another spring semester has come and gone, but as they say- time flies when you are having fun! The last few months have produced many memorable stories and experiences throughout our alumni networks. A great slate of events and programs has allowed us to once again reach a large number of Jayhawks wherever they may call home. A few of the highlights:

Our Topeka network once again hosted the KU football coaching staff for their annual Football in February tour. Nearly 150 Jayhawks came out in support of Coach Beaty and the football squad.

In February, our four largest Texas networks (Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston and Austin) hosted celebrations of KU’s Sesquicentennial. In partnership with the KU Libraries, we were able to catch up with an outstanding variety of Jayhawks. As in the past, these collaborative events attracted an audience that we do not normally reach. It is particularly rewarding when once of these new connections becomes a volunteer, advocate, or donor.

Our Lawrence network continues to host a wide variety of social, academic, and professional development based programming. In addition to the successful networking series, our young alumni network is beginning to engage a large, and diverse group of recent graduates who make their homes in Lawrence. One of the largest upcoming events will be a par 3 tournament at the Orchards- if you are in town on June 11th we would love to see you on the course!

Through the engagement of several new volunteers, we are also in the process of gathering the level of interest in a Lawrence women’s alumni network. As a faction of the network at large, this group would aim to offer a very unique set of events and programs unique to female alumni and friends.

The Omaha network also has several new volunteers who are very enthusiastic about leading the group. Following a successful networking event in January (where over 30 Jayhawks braved a blizzard to attend), we have been able to identify some additional Jayhawks in the area, and anticipate continued growth within the network.

As you can see, it has been a busy semester, and the summer will be here before we know it. I hope to see you all at one of our ‘Hawkdays stops this summer, but until then thank you for your leadership and support.

Rock Chalk!

Tyler RockersCoordinator of Alumni Programs

KU Alumni AssociationNetwork Programs

May 2016

This is by far my favorite time of the year on campus. The trees are starting to bud, the red and yellow tulips start to pop up on campus and Jayhawk Boulevard is looking more beautiful than ever. Campus is a buzz of activity as students prepare to end the semester, and some prepare to end their time here at KU.

But here at the Alumni Association, we are just getting started!

We hosted several of our annual events in the Western part of the state this past spring. In February, the Great Plains Network hosted their annual Shrimp Boil. With over 70 in attendance, fun was had by all---and the Jayhawks pulled through with a win! The Southwest network hosted a watch party in February as well as part of the Southwest Tumble. There was a great group of Jayhawks that attended, and the men’s basketball team walked away with a win!

Nationally, our networks focused on watch parties, networking events and a few social functions. Jayhawk faithful showed up for every game to cheer on the Jayhawks at their local watch sites. We had watch parties in Atlanta, Jacksonville, Tampa Bay, Central North Carolina, Baltimore, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, and even Columbia, Missouri! Our St. Louis network competed against local Iowa State Alumni on the night of our Big Monday matchup. Despite the Jayhawks not coming away with a victory, there were over 100 KU alumni in attendance! Our Minneapolis network has held a networking event on the first Tuesday of every month for the last 6 months. The event goes between a happy hour and a networking breakfast every other month. It has been a huge success as we have had many new people participate and people are becoming familiar with the event taking place each month!

As summer quickly approaches, our Kansas and National networks will hold events throughout the summer months. In western Kansas, we are looking to host golf tournaments in Hays and Garden City with a Presidents Club golf outing taking place in Liberal. We are looking to schedule the annual Salina Steak Out later in the summer months! Nationally we will be soaking up the summer sun with outdoor events that include happy hours, baseball games, family picnics and events that will welcome incoming students and their families and get them ready to arrive on campus!

It is sure to be a busy summer, but the hope is that all who attend our events walk away with pride in their University and have a sense of true connection with the University through a strong relationship with the Alumni Association.

Kelsey HillCoordinator of Alumni Programs

KU Alumni AssociationAffinity Chapters and Reunions Board Report

May 6-7, 2016

Affinity ProgramsBlack Alumni Network (BAN): Since the Black Alumni Reunion last September, the Black Alumni Network Leadership Team has been settling into their new roles. Student Programs and Young Alumni Co-Chairs Kriston Guillot and Michelle Williams attempted to hold a “Welcome Back” pizza party for African American freshman at the beginning of the spring semester. However, attendance was not great, so it was decided that the BAN would try to engage with students at pre-set events such as sponsoring a Black Student Union meeting. Brenda Vann is leading KU Black Alumni Network advocacy efforts in the form of collecting names of alumni from individual schools. These alumni will serve as resources for the Black Alumni Network in regards to their particular specialty. Additionally, the Mike and Joyce Shinn Leaders and Innovators Committee will begin their work on seeking nominations for the award over the summer.  Veterans Alumni Network (VAN): The Veterans Alumni Network has been working closely with the transition of the Student Veterans Center from the Burge Union to the recently vacated Summerfield Hall. At the end of March, April Blackmon-Strange was hired to serve as the Director of the new Student Veterans Center. The Student Veterans Center is a space designated for student veterans to study, relax, and hold meetings. The Veterans Alumni Network is assisting KU Endowment with efforts to raise money for IT needs and operating expenses.

For the 2016-2017 academic year there are six returning Wounded Warrior Scholarship recipients. Each recipient will received $5,000 per year to go towards their academic endeavors. The Veterans Alumni Network will be selecting three to four additional recipients for the 2016-2017 academic year.

The Veterans Alumni Network will continue their trend of hosting one meet and greet per semester. This spring the VAN has chosen to host an event at the Alumni Center for graduating veterans and ROTC students as a way to celebrate their academic accomplishments. Local faculty, staff, and alumni veterans will also be invited to attend. Furthermore, the Alumni Association will be sponsoring veteran cords for veterans graduating with a 3.0 or higher GPA to be worn with commencement regalia. Each graduating veteran will also receive the VAN Challenge Coin.

Reunions2016 Alumni Reunion Weekend: The 2016 Alumni Reunion weekend was revamped in order to boost attendance at both our annual 50-year and Gold Medal Club reunions. This year the two groups merged for all reunion events. We continued with the same popular events that reunion attendees enjoy every year including the Quantrill’s Raid Bus Tour, Campus Bus Tour, and the annual Gold Medal Club Luncheon. Members from the Class of 1966 were honored at the Gold Medal Club Luncheon for reaching their 50 th Anniversary from KU. We also featured the KU Libraries KU 150: Celebrating 150 Years of Leadership, Scholarship and Tradition at the University of Kansas presentation with University Archivist Becky Schulte and Jim Carothers a professor in the KU English Department. With the addition of the 50-year class members at the Gold Medal Club luncheon, our overall numbers improved from 90 people last year to 110 this year. However, we only had 35 members from the Class of 1966 present throughout the weekend. The total number of reunion attendees for the weekend was 125. The Gold Medal Club committee members are in favor of this new format and are looking forward to making improvements for next year.

Rock Chalk,

Jacey Krehbiel, d’12

KU Alumni AssociationKansas City Programs

National Board Report – May 2016

Spring is finally here, and we are ready to celebrate with all of you at the Rock Chalk Ball! The Kansas City Network Board, and our committee have been hard at work to make this year’s event extra special. In addition, we have planned a number of other fun, engaging, and impactful alumni programs for the spring and summer in the Kansas City area.

Rock Chalk Ball

There’s No Place Like Home! This year’s 21st Rock Chalk Ball returns to the Kansas side of the state line, and we couldn’t be more excited for Saturday, April 23rd to finally arrive. Continuing with the success of the last two years, we offered a members-only early-bird ticket special from January 1-31 to get things rolling. We currently have close to 700 reservations, and since the end of basketball season, more tables and tickets are being purchased each day.

The big announcement at this year’s ball will be the introduction of mobile bidding. Jacey Krehbiel has been amazing in developing a strong plan with the company BidPal, to make the process as fun and easy on attendees as possible. By the time we get together for our May meeting, we hope to have some BIG numbers to share with you on the success of our silent auction.

The further details are all coming together, and with the help of our celebrity voice emcee, Topher Enneking, we are confident that the year’s program will be incredibly memorable. Under the leadership of our committee chairs, Mark Frutiger and Jake Ballard, and our Network Board President, Matt Taylor, we think our attendees will be wowed by the many new and exciting auction items, including a No Place Like Home auction table, featuring items from local Jayhawk and Kansas City businesses. In addition, our honorary chair’s Suzy and John Holt, and Shanna and Joseph Grant, have been wonderfully hands-on and provided much needed financial leadership and support of the ball.

Below are a few statistics to share about our current ticket sales. I hope you will plan to join us, and share your fun stories from this memorable evening when we are all gather in May.

1 Oread Benefactors at $10,0003 Rock Chalk Benefactors at $5,0004 Jayhawk Benefactors at $2,5009 Presidents Club Benefactors at $2,25014 University Friends tables (2 more than 2015)15 Table hosts (3 more than 2015)8 Young Alumni tables

Also, save-the-Date for the 22nd Rock Chalk Ball on Saturday, April 29, 2017 back at the Overland Park Convention Center!

Spring/Summer (and a few Fall) 2016 Events

KU Natural History Museum Focus Group – May 2 Spencer Art Museum, Art History on the Rocks: Bourbon and Thomas Hart Benton – May 12 3rd Annual Biospecimen Repository Blood Drive – May 13 Hawks, Helmets and Handlebars (in partnership with Healthy Hawks) – June 4, 2016

o Bike donation days at the KU Edwards Campus – April 23 and May 7 Top Golf event – June 22

Journalism Networking Career Series Event (hosted at MBB) – June 2016 Presidents Club prospect reception at Clare and Nick Blasi’s home – June 2016 KUAA Night at Sporting Kansas City (vs. LA Galaxy) – September 18 Hawktoberfest at Boulevard Brewery – October 19

I am so excited about these programs in the months ahead, and continuing to build relationships with our community partners and the KU family in Kansas City. Thank you for your support and for all you do for KU! Rock Chalk!

Betsy WinetroubDirector, Kansas City Programs

KU Alumni AssociationWichita Programs

National Board Report – May 2016

Winter has flown by here in Wichita and we are in full swing with many upcoming events. While I spent most of winter on maternity leave with our newest little Jayhawk, I was still able to work some and keep many scheduled events in Wichita.

With another exciting basketball season, it was fun to center many events around the games. We had two chartered bus trips from Wichita to Lawrence for the “Big Monday” basketball games. Both trips were full of Wichita Jayhawk fans and everyone had a great time! We were fortunate that we scheduled one of the trips on the KU vs. OU triple overtime victory! KUAA and the Wichita network also held multiple watch parties throughout the basketball season.

Wichita was honored to have coach David Beaty and other members of the coaching staff make a trip to Wichita for one of their “Football in February” events. There was a great turnout and many fans were eager to hear an update about the upcoming season.

The Wichita KU alumni network board members are always eager to volunteer and help with events. The KU admissions department recently had the Chancellor’s banquet to celebrate multicultural students who have been accepted to KU. We had local KU alumni members and board members volunteer their time to share their experiences with the prospective students to encourage them to attend the University.

We have many exciting events and programs coming up this Spring and Summer. KUAA will be hosting a career networking event at KOCH Industries. The luncheon includes a presentation on Crude Oil Prices: Recent, Past and Potential Future. This is a great opportunity for Wichita area Jayhawks to mingle while learning about the impact energy prices have on American consumers and businesses. KUAA will be partnering with KU Athletics in May to host the annual tailgate for the KU vs. WSU baseball game. We are hoping for excellent weather and a large turnout!

Looking ahead on the calendar we have already begun planning for the 2016 Jayhawk Roundup, which will take place on Saturday, October 1st at the Murfin Stables. We are excited to announce that our KUAA national board member and Wichita network board member Greg Ek and his wife Debby will be this year’s event chairs. We are thrilled to have them on board and we have started planning for another fun filled event! So, please save the date and we hope to see you there!

Thank you,

Danielle HooverAssistant Director of Wichita Programs

Student Programs Board ReportMay 6, 2016

Student Alumni Association (SAA) As previously reported, we are excited about the partnership with KU Endowment to offer four-year SAA gift memberships to all incoming freshmen beginning this fall. We will transition to gift memberships for all undergrads over the next four years. The following is a summary of the long-term goals for this program:Goals: Build and develop the single best Student Alumni Association in the country to achieve the long-term

mission and vision the KU Alumni Association and KU Endowment, while supporting University priorities.

Establish an on-campus culture of tradition, pride, engagement, involvement, joining and giving back – the “Jayhawk Way”.

Provide leadership opportunities to students through alumni involvement and campus partnerships. Offer networking opportunities in a variety of formats. Provide education programs to help students be successful while they are on campus and after they

leave the Hill. Offer community service opportunities. Provide social activities to allow students to interact with a diverse audience and experience all

aspects of KU. Build awareness of alumni networks in the state of Kansas, across the country and around the world

to encourage continued involvement and volunteerism.

Based on the changes to SAA, all student activities will move from Membership to the Alumni and Student Programs Dept. led by Brad Eland and Kiley Peterman. We will work with KU Endowment and other campus partners over the summer to develop the programs for the start of the fall semester.

Member RecruitmentWe will still service current four-year members and offer sophomore- senior students the opportunity to join SAA for $25 per year under the current program with existing member gifts. Based on this plan, we are continuing to market through email, social media, web site and optional campus fees to ensure all students know they are welcome.

We will participate in all summer Orientation Sessions (freshmen and transfer) to inform and educate freshmen on how to activate their membership, inform transfer students to join through our website and market regular memberships to parents.

We are also marketing the one-year gift memberships for 2016 graduates via Grad Fairs (KU, Edwards and Med center campuses), email, social media, UDK advertising, Grad Grill and Commencement activities.

Member ProgramsThe following is a summary of programs that have occurred since the last board meeting, as well as what is scheduled the remainder of the spring semester:

Networking Night —hosted a Business and Journalism event with eight alumni participating on the panel and serving as table hosts.

Pre-law Pathways – partnered with the Law School to help host a Networking Night for students interested in pursuing a law degree.

Etiquette Dinner – partnered with the University Career Center to a dinner focusing on business and dinner etiquette.

Watch Party – hosted a watch party in the pub for the KU vs. Baylor game

ESPN Game Day – reserved seating for SAA and WEFU members for early morning game day activities for the KU vs. Kentucky game.

Jubilee Café – SALB students volunteer to serve breakfast to in-need community members in a restaurant-style environment, which is hosted at a local church.

Aerospace Engineering – partnered with Engineering to help host a Networking Night. Rock Chalk Ball – SALB students assist with the auction and interact with alumni and attendees

to help with the bidding and closing process. Grad Grill – All graduates are invited to attend and enjoy free food, discounted beverages, photo

booth, DJ, Baby Jay and the opportunity to network with board members during the lunch hour. Finals Dinner —SAA members may bring a guest and enjoy a free dinner, movies, shoulder

massages and therapy dogs to help them prepare for the week. Quiet Study Space – SAA members may use the pub during Finals Week as an alternative place

to study. Snacks and beverages are provided throughout the day. Commencement Open House —Graduates and their families are invited to stop by the Adams

Alumni Center to enjoy light snacks and beverages after the ceremony in the stadium.

Student Alumni Leadership Board (SALB)The members of SALB have done an excellent job this semester. They planned and executed all of our SAA events. They also: tabled on campus at junior and senior days, helped at the Chancellor’s tailgates, assisted with legacy recruitment, attended KHP’s, participated in homecoming events, written postcards to Presidents Club members and have continued to promote membership in SAA. This group will play an integral part in the implementation of the new partnership with KU Endowment to engage all freshmen beginning this fall.

Legacy Relations UpdateBoard of Directors Meeting of the KU Alumni Association

May 6 – 7, 2016

Legacy Relations EffortsHome stretch. Final steps. It’s pretty remarkable to get to the end of a recruitment cycle and hear from students on their college decision. Plenty opting to follow in their parents’ footsteps and witness KU’s incredible tradition for themselves. Others opting for Creighton (Brady Happe) or Oklahoma (Mikey Corbett) or the London College of Music (Chandler Booth). (I unwillingly force myself to let these students go. It’s not pretty!) This is also the time of the year when juniors and a handful of sophomores start to emerge and piece together their college search process. It’s fun and fulfilling, and I’m proud of what we’ve generated in the Office of Legacy Relations during this spring semester:

16 recruitment territories have received a letter from key KU alumni and current SALB students including Jim Bredfeldt to the state of Washington, Mark Randall to the state of Colorado and Caleb Bobo to all minorities who’ve been admitted to KU. Caleb’s letter is included in this report.

2,108 Jayhawk cell phone clings were sent to all admitted legacies in late March/early April 2,180 KU Valentines were sent to all admitted legacies in early February 1,299 KUAA calendars were sent to all admitted legacies who have received a KU scholarship in

January 37 individual campus visits for top-notch legacies since last fall

The number of legacy undergraduates is holding steady on campus -- 4,482 (23.3%) in Fall 2015 -- and the efforts listed above are in place to continue this trend into the fall. Our Jayhawk Generations Recognition Night is also scheduled for late April in an effort to retain the outstanding legacies we already have on campus.

With last fall’s move to incorporate all majors into the Midwest Student Exchange, several of our prospective Jayhawk Generations Scholarship recipients in the entry-tier and mid-tier were shifted to the MSE. As such, only 468 offers have been extended for Fall 2016 compared to 609 at this point last year. 129 have committed to KU by paying their enrollment deposit as of 4/11/16. I am hopeful that over this summer, all three tiers of the JGENS will be adjusted and increased to trump the MSE, which is awarded to legacies and non-legacies. More information on that in the fall, once the revised scholarship grid is announced.

As of 4/4/16, a total of 17,305 students have applied for Fall 2016, a -5.5% decrease from this time last year. 3,142 students have paid their enrollment deposit, a -4.2% decrease from this time last year. The goal is to reach an incoming class of 4,000 students. Thank you for your referrals, your letters to admitted students and your generosity in hosting student recruitment events. I’m looking forward to a summer of planning and creating a fresh approach to how we recruit legacies. Your feedback is always welcomed and appreciated. Thanks & Rock Chalk!Joy Maxwell

Dear High School Senior,

Congratulations on your acceptance to the University of Kansas! Your admittance is a testament to your hard work and dedication during your high school years, of which you should be very proud. My name is Caleb Bobo and I'm a senior at KU studying Political Science and African American Studies. My time at the University of Kansas has been nothing short of amazing, and I wanted to share a little bit of my story with you as you get closer to making your college decision.

As a young black male, I was a tad worried about feeling comfortable and accepted on campus. To my surprise, from the moment I stepped on campus I not only felt welcomed, but also I felt at home. The staff and faculty are genuinely interested in getting to know me as a person and assisting me in obtaining my educational and professional goals. The University of Kansas has given me everything I wanted in a collegiate experience and then some, so I would like to share a few of the opportunities I've had since becoming a Jayhawk, which I hope will make your decision to attend KU a bit easier:

1.) Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research: As a sophomore, I was given the opportunity to pursue my own research project about the experience of minority students on college campuses. That project not only gave me the opportunity to publish my own scholarly work, but I was also able to present that project at the 2015 Undergraduate Research Day at the Kansas State Capital to administrators and legislators from across the state.

2.) Gaining Professional Experience: Both the summer after my sophomore and junior year, I had the opportunity to intern in Washington D.C. in a program I was nominated for by one of my professors. Not only did these experiences reaffirm the many things I was learning in the classroom, but they also gave me an opportunity to visit our nation's capital and grow both as a person and young professional.

3.) Involvement & Leadership Opportunities: One of my favorite parts about my KU experience were the many opportunities to get involved. As an out-of-state student, I initially used involvement as a means to meet people, but it turned out these organizations really honed my leadership, planning, and communication skills. Whether it was Student Senate or the Club Golf Team, involvement continually put me in the room with students from all across the country and positively shaped my time here on campus.

4.) An Opportunity to Make a Difference: As I matured here at the University of Kansas I’ve had countless opportunities to give back. Whether I was working with senior staff on campus to make programs more inclusive, or spending time with elementary school students after class, KU has provided me the opportunity to help others through organized and informal community service.

5.) Relationships that will last a Lifetime: Although there are several things about KU that I love, nothing comes close to the people. On more occasions than I can count, a Jayhawk has offered and provided me help, both personally and professionally. The alumni network in St Louis has already helped with my transition to Saint Louis University for graduate studies once I complete my time in Lawrence this spring. If you choose to attend KU, you too will be joining more than just a university community; you'll be joining a family.

By no means is this list exhaustive, but it does highlight some of my favorite parts about being a Jayhawk. I truly believe if you decide to attend the University of Kansas, you'll look back with great pride in your decision. As I get closer to graduation I often wonder if there are things I would do differently, and not once have I regretted my decision to come to KU. If there's anything I can do to help you make your decision easier, please do not hesitate to reach out to me. I wish you the best in your decision making process.

Best wishes & Rock Chalk!Caleb A. Bobobobo.caleb@gmail.com

KU Alumni AssociationMembership Board Report

May 6, 2016

The following is a summary of the membership numbers as of March 31, 2016 compared to March 31, 2015.

Membership Type March 31, 2016 March 31, 2015 +/- %Annual Regular 10,329 9,995 334 3.3%Annual Jayhawk Society 2,830 3,048 (218) (7.2%)Life Regular 19,082 18,562 520 2.8%Life Jayhawk Society 1,441 1,420 21 1.5%Student Alumni Association 1,412 1,404 8 .6%Senior Class (KUEA Gift) 6,474 6,739 (265) (3.9%)Future Jayhawks 1,092 1,213 (121) (10%)TOTAL 42,660 42,381 279 .7%

Additional data comparison for the last seven months:Membership Type 3/31/16 2/29/16 1/31/16 12/31/15 11/30/15 10/31/15 9/30/15

Annual Regular 10,329 9,043 9,589 9,846 9,919 9,957 10,044Annual Jayhawk Soc. 2,830 2,648 2,845 2,880 2,850 2,883 2,903Life Regular 19,082 19,045 18,923 18,868 18,836 18,852 18,824Life Jayhawk Society 1,441 1,336 1,468 1,568 1,494 1,471 1,469SAA 1,412 1,409 1,385 1,380 1,346 1,322 1,315Senior Class (KUEA Gift)

6,474 6,505 6,508 6,509 6,516 6,517 6,521

Future Jayhawks 1,092 1,071 1,080 1,137 1,162 1,152 1,156TOTAL 42,660 41,057 41,798 42,188 42,123 42,154 42,232

Membership Revenue Trends – Annual comparison (budgeted FY16 Dues Revenue goal - $1,431,000)

             

Membership Type   

FY16Thru

March

FY15FY14

FY13 FY12 FY11 FY10 FY09

Annual   331,940 412,430 435,236 457,388 530,40

0 530,18

7 610,51

9 682,56

0 Jayhawk Society   294,608 380,825 407,435 395,957

398,833

413,915

434,088

446,685

Future Jayhawks  

10,78018,045 16,710 14,460

10,155

6,955

7,140

5,275

Life Membership   353,766 567,224 572,401 481,250

351,584

398,487

371,741

403,095

SAA  26,675

27,565 26,896 40,931 41,66

2 27,82

1 31,95

6 32,43

6          

TOTAL  $1,017,76

9$1,406,08

9$1,458,67

8$1,389,98

6 $1,332,6

34 $1,377,3

65 $1,455,4

44 $1,570,0

50

We exceeded our $115,000 March goal by $45,000 as a result of the Bio Update project and the Big 12 Championship 12-Hour Sale. We are still behind our budgeted YTD goal by $103,000, but are promoting graduation gifts, 2015 recent grads with expiring gift comp memberships and our Join/Upgrade in June promotion to close out the fiscal year and reduce the negative variance.

As a reminder, the Big 12 Promotion generated participation from 445 members (52% were lapsed/never/comp members and 48% were current members who renewed/upgraded). We generated $46,321 in 12-hours. When you factor in the full 12 months of installment payments generated from this promotion we generated $90,289. We only spent $135 on social media ads, which translates to $.30 per member to recruit/retain/upgrade. We launched the Bio Update/Recruitment promotion to 34,403 lapsed members on Feb. 10. We have achieved the following results as of April 15: Bio Updates: Online – 538 and Mail – 2,577 = Total 3,115 updates for a 9.1% response rate Total Memberships: 769 for a 2.2% response rate (25% response rate of those who submitted their

Bio Update) Nearly 300 alumni have signed up to serve as a mentor in our Alumni Mentor NetworkSummary of Upcoming Membership Promotions

Program Details2015 Gift/Comp Members

Gift membership expires 5/31/15. Using social media and sending a series of reminder emails focusing on relevant

career/networking programs, benefits, discounts and recent grad rates. Inserting flier in the May/June magazine polybag since this will be their last issue.

2016 Graduates and Parents

For graduates, focusing on the one-year gift membership, collecting updated contact info. promoting networks and career/networking programs.

For parents, we sent a direct mail promotion to market the half-price Life membership and Grad Pack incentive, featuring a commemorative crimson and blue tassel. We will also send follow-up emails to the parent audience.

We are also using magazine advertising, member enewsletter, member and non-member dedicated emails, website and social media to promote “give the gift of membership for graduation.”

Hosting Grad Grill and Commencement Open House for graduates and their families.Future Jayhawks Focusing on join/renew now to ensure your child is signed up for Future Jayhawks to

be part of the July Reading Program. Future Jayhawks was a sponsor of the Hilltop Hustle 5k run to market membership to

the families and friends of the Hilltop Child Development Center.

Faculty/Staff Endacott Society

Working with Linda Mullens to promote membership and the Endacott Society to the 2016 retiring faculty and staff.

Join/Upgrade in June

Target lapsed/never members and specific segments of our current membership for upgrades via social media, email, direct mail, web site, events, magazine advertising and network volunteers.

Incentive for this promotion is a set of two rock glasses.

KU 150/Sept. 12th Working on promotion to celebrate the first of day of classes at KU (Sept. 12, 1866).

We are excited for the changes in the Membership Department to focus on revenue generation through dues and corporate partnerships/sponsorships and advertising. We are currently transitioning student programs/SAA/SALB to the Alumni Programs Department and look forward to discussing next steps and strategies for Business Development during the upcoming Revenue Development Committee meeting.

KU Alumni Association

Flying Jayhawks Board ReportTegan Thornberry – May 2016

Travel is changing along with the climate in the world today. It is hard to predict what travel trends will be popular. We also have to address acts of terrorism happening worldwide and how this changes the purchasing habits of our passengers. We’ve dealt with it this winter with the attacks in Paris and most recently the bombings in Brussels. We communicate with our passengers ahead of time along with the tour operators to ensure safety and security. Fortunately, there have only been a small number of passenger cancellations. Our 2016 number of passengers is at 316 and counting compared to 213 reported last year at this same time.

On a lighter note, since we last met I hosted a group of 28 Jayhawks on a Costa Rica and Panama Canal trip. With the help of Danny Lewis, we reached out to a list of local alumni living in Panama to join the Flying Jayhawks group for a reception. Nine local Jayhawks were able to come aboard the ship for a reception and stayed for a dinner buffet served on the ship decks. The passengers and the local alumni had a wonderful time getting to know each other and share their Jayhawk stories. One exciting thing about the gathering was the local alumni in Panama got to meet each other. They didn’t know each other beforehand, but left as friends with plans to get together to watch games.

As reported previously, Dale and Marianne Seuferling hosted a Tanzania Migration Safari for us at the end of January. They served as fantastic ambassadors for us and the University. The passengers had a wonderful experience with them. The group was able to visit a school with a Jayhawk classroom. The same trip was offered in 2014 and one of our past Flying Jayhawks passengers on that trip, Marjorie Short, noticed they needed more classrooms. She then funded an additional classroom, and they named it the Jayhawk classroom. It was quite an experience for our 2016 passengers be a part of the legacy and see the impact one Jayhawk can make around the world.

Exploring Australia & New Zealand January 4 – 26 Symphony on the Blue Danube June 22 - July1

Island Life – Cuba January 7 - 16 Canadian Rockies July 7 – 15

Tahiti and French Polynesia February 9 -19 Discover Southeast Alaska July 14 – 21

Expedition to Antarctica February 9 – 22 Regal Routes August 12 – 23

Amazon River February 24 – March 5 Scotland August 23 – 31

Vietnam & Cambodia April 11 – 26 Baltic & Scandinavian Treasures August 22 – September 2

Timeless Treasures April 28 – May 6 Normandy August 28 – September 5

Inland Sea of Japan April 30 – May 10 Machu Picchu to Galapagos September 5 – 19

Portrait of Italy May 4 – 20 Island Life Greece September 18 – 26

Mediterranean Masterpiece May 10 – 21 Treasures of South Africa October 1 -16

Celtic Lands May 16 – 25 Mediterranean Radiance October 7 – 17

Vineyards & Vignettes May 23 – June 1 Music of America October 29 – November 6

Flavors of Northern Italy June 3 -11 Holiday Markets December 1 - 12

The Great Journey through Europe June 15 – 25

We have a busy 2016 ahead and believe it or not; we just published our 2017 schedule online. 2016 trips with hosts include: European Coastal Civilization; Holland and Belgium; Sorrento, Italy; Celtic Lands; Southern Cultures and Civil War; Cruising the Baltic Sea; Cruise the Face of Europe; and Italian Lakes and Venice. I’m excited for the Baltic Sea trip that features the Chancellor and Shade Little as our hosts.

Lastly, the following is a summary of our 2017 schedule. We are trying some new trip locations, bringing back some tried and true adventures, and working with a past tour operator to help diversify our schedule of trip offerings. Look for The Flying Jayhawks ad and brochure request card in the May/June Kansas Alumni magazine. I encourage you to opt in and become a Flying Jayhawks subscriber to receive our monthly travel emails. We would love for you to take an adventure with us!

Report to the Board of DirectorsInformation Systems and Alumni Records

May 2016

We continue to process updates from the membership biographical forms that were mailed in February. We received over 3,000 forms back, about a 9% response rate. More updates continue to arrive through the mail and email every day. In addition to changes in basic contact information, alumni have provided helpful detailed data like cell phone numbers, employer name, job title, business addresses, and the names of their spouse and children. All of this information supports Association programs and helps us to stay in touch.

We loaded 4,823 candidates for May 2016 degrees into the database during the first week of April. Early access to this data enables us to create a preliminary list of new graduates to support a membership mailing to their parents. We were able to load that data, clean up the list and send the file to our printer so the mailing could be dropped the second week of April.

While we have already received numerous non-ku.edu email addresses for the class of 2016 we will still need to reach out to the ones that we haven’t heard from. Personal email addresses help us maintain contact with new grads as they make their transitions, whether that is to employment or further education. Our next step will be to load gift memberships onto candidates’ records, as well as the records of class members who graduated earlier. We already recorded 2,087 degrees granted to the class of 2016 who graduated in August or December 2015.

A key systems project for us now is completing programming to support the new mobile app for alumni and members. We hope this will become a new source of contact data for Alumni Records as well as an entertaining and useful resource for our constituents.

Stefanie Shackelford Bill GreenVP for Alumni and Membership Records Sr. VP, Information Systems and Services

Digital Media & Marketing Board ReportMay 2016

Changes announced in April provided strategic focus to the entire organization, including our departmental efforts focused on digital media and marketing.

Specific changes included a title change for me, now VP for digital media and marketing. This aligns all titles in the department under the same umbrella. It also supports our strategic goal to enhance digital media efforts to engage all alumni and especially young alumni utilizing technology to delivery content that is both timely and relevant.

The shift also moves advertising sales coordination to our business development area under Teri Harris and Tegan Thornberry, freeing up Kara Rodriguez to focus on her time and talents on digital media strategy, content development and analytics. This is an exciting time in our department, and our team is jazzed about the things we can accomplish.

Website SuccessSeveral efforts this spring helped drive alumni to our website- some unwittingly, as was the case for our April Fool’s Day member e-news. Our story on a second “U-shaped” building for the School of Business (forming a “KU” when viewed from above) fooled several alumni, as well as some staff at KU Endowment. Contributing to the story’s believability was surely the confidence alumni have in Dean Neeli’s ability to fast-track a another building project if she wanted one! The story resulted in a highest single-day pageviews of 2016 for a story, and the site experienced its highest traffic of the year.

Digital Asset ManagementIn addition to efforts previously reported, such as our live streaming of the Power of Sport event, we are developing more digital media programs. To support these, a small but significant budget expense will be the investment in a new Digital Asset Management program, or “DAM” for short. The DAM will be a cloud-based storage system for photos, videos and graphics that be organized and accessed by staff anywhere, improving our reporting by making us more agile and efficient.

Mobile AppOur new mobile app will launch at commencement, thanks to the efforts of too many staff members to mention, including our partners at MobileUp. The app will offer limited features to anyone who downloads it, encouraging alumni to register. Once they do, the app will deliver a customized experience for members, allowing them to ready a digital edition of the current magazine, search our mentor directory, register for events, renew or upgrade their membership, etc.

Non-members will have access to basic app features, including the calendar, social media feed and an opportunity to join. Other features, including push notifications and seasonal content (homecoming, watch parties) can be added easily when needed through a user-friendly admin tool. We expect the app to be a new, convenient and relevant way for alumni to engage with us on their terms.

EmailWorking with iModules, we are building a new section of the tool to accommodate university emails that currently sent by the Association. This will do two things for us: 1.) It will alleviate the burden we currently experience when alumni opt-out of KU emails. Since those emails are currently sent from KUAA’s section of the tool, we are penalized because we can no longer communicate with those alumni. More than 50% of the opt-outs we receive come from KU, not KUAA, emails. Moving those emails to a separate area protects our relationship with alumni.

Also, 2.) separating these deliveries also makes it easier for KU to start facilitating their own deliveries while still relying on our records database. This ultimately would free up more of our staff time to focus on Association initiatives while supporting KU communication through a centralized tool that syncs with the alumni database.

Marketing During March Madness, we partnered with the Lawrence Journal-World in sponsoring the delivery of newspapers to alumni in Louisville for the NCAA Regional. Papers were delivered to the KU hotel and pep rally with a banner across the front page that read, “This newspaper is brought to you by your KU Alumni Association.” The effort was very well-received and cost us just $150 per day. We are hoping to build on strong marketing relationships with the Journal-World and KU Athletics in the coming year to boost awareness and pride in the KU Alumni Association.

Staff AccoladesOur team is our greatest asset. This spring we’ve been fortunate to work with Cole Anneberg, our digital media intern. Cole is a former art director for Kansan who was in charge of digital projects, including Kansan.com and the UDK’s award-winning “Day in the Life” feature. I’m also proud to say that Kara Rodriguez and Debbi Johanning were selected to present at the 2016 iModules client conference on social media best practices, specifically highlighting our #aviewfromku Instagram campaign. Mike Wick is already focused on the next evolution of kualumni.org, preparing to transition the site to a more flexible–and stable–platform that can grown with our needs. We are so fortunate to have such a talented and dedicated team working for you. Let us know if you ever have feedback or suggestions. Thanks, and Rock Chalk!

–David Johnston

Communications ReportApril 2016

We have grown accustomed to bleak reports on the legislative front, so please revel in this rare happy news: Kelly Reynolds, director of state relations, has purchased a home in Lawrence—a clear signal that she intends to stay in her role. After a “revolving door” in KU’s state relations efforts in recent years, we can look forward to working with Kelly as we enhance our alumni advocacy work throughout the state.

The Legislature returns to Topeka April 27 for the wrap-up session, which should be brief because members want to begin campaigning in this election year. Kelly anticipates a weeklong session, with possible adjournment by May 6, the first day of our Board meeting. We will send a message to our Jayhawks for Higher Education Steering Committee members before the session begins, and ideally we will host a conference call with the group by mid-May to review the overall session. We also will send a message to all JHE members. During our Board meeting, we will share more details about the budget, other key legislative issues and our advocacy efforts during this election year.

Before we turn our eyes back to Topeka, we’re focused on the Rock Chalk Ball in Kansas City. As always, we’re in the thick of décor and program preparations, including the script, slide shows and videos for the evening.

We’re also preparing for Commencement, especially the launch of our app, which we will promote to recent grads not only at the larger Commencement ceremony in the stadium and our Open House, but also at the schools’ graduation programs on Friday and Saturday. We will encourage recent grads to download the app and take advantage of the benefits throughout their one-year gift membership. We also will ensure that Kansas Alumni magazine’s digital format on the app and our website offers appealing features for new graduates and all members.

Our summer agenda includes projects to support the expansion of the Student Alumni Association and promote membership to KU parents during summer orientation. In addition, we’re working with Danielle and the Wichita Network volunteers to plan the Jayhawk Roundup.

Jennifer Sanner Susan YoungerSenior Vice President for Communications Creative Director

KU Alumni AssociationHospitality Services Board Report

Bryan Greve, Senior Vice President for HospitalityMay 6, 2023

Banquet Services

As the attached chart indicates, Banquet Services sales have trended back up since last fiscal year. This chart shows our sales through February, with four months left. As you know, we began working on a comprehensive marketing plan when are sales were decreasing. Although we are behind budget, we are pleased to be ahead of last year by over $25,000. sales.

As previously mentioned, we are currently working on a new phase of our marketing plan. Whereas the first phase concentrated on social events and web design, the new endeavor will to be to increase our KUAA programs, KU departmental programs, and reunions in the facility.

Three of our part-time students will be graduating in May; congratulations to; Eva, Amber and Caleb. Along with their homework, these student staff members keep busy greeting our guests, dusting, cleaning, polishing, as well as opening and closing the building. Congratulations, and thank you for all of

ACTUAL ACTUAL2/29/2016 2/29/2015 Variance

UNIVERSITY EVENTS

300.5330 Food Sales-Univ 9,674.84 9,005.70 300.5333 Alcoholic Bev-Univ 30,908.03 25,484.74 300.5339 Room Rentals-Univ 24,710.00 23,115.00 300.533x Other-Univ 28,205.55 17,483.24

Total University 93,498.42 75,088.68

OUTSIDE EVENTS300.5350 Food Sales-Outside 287.02 210.50 300.5353 Alcoholic Bev-Outside 8,184.92 5,339.55 300.5359 Room Rentals 10,710.00 5,035.00 300.535x Other-Outside 2,944.40 1,919.98

Total Outside 22,126.34 12,505.03

TOTAL REVENUE 115,624.76 87,593.71

TOTAL COST OF GOODS SOLD (25,994.23)(24,056.46

)

TOTAL NET SALES 89,630.53 63,537.25 26,093.28

May Board Report

2016

Well there went another winter without much snow!! Other than a few near zero degree nights and couple days of snow with no more than 2 inches each day, the winter was an easy one. We only had the parking lot sanded twice, and there wasn’t even enough snow to shovel. As you can see, spring came early as well, with the trees full of leaves, flowers blooming, and the lawn needing to be cut. We had crews out prepping the irrigation system and replacing sprinkler heads where needed.

With the fertilizer treatments and water from the lawn irrigation, the lawn has filled in very well especially where the Redbud and the Bradford Pear trees were removed on the south lawn. We also had a situation in the front of the building early April this year, and it might look a little different when approaching the building because a row of Box Wood hedges caught fire (due to a carelessly discarded cigarette, we think). We’ve decided to remove the entire row and replace them with sod. This will open up the front of the building and make football Fridays a little easier to manage, giving us a little more space for attendees on the front lawn.

We’ve completed another stage of repairing the parking lot. This round we replaced damaged areas in the back lot and repaired the steps located by the president’s parking spot. Our next phase will include repairing the city sidewalk and stairs located on 13th street and Oread. There are a couple areas in the upper lot that will need some attention too due to the winter freezing and thawing.

The changing of incandescent to LED lighting is a process that will continue. A large majority of the building’s can lights are now LED which will last longer and save energy.

Other than small repairs and maintenance upkeep, the building is running smoothly.

Ben Shepley

Director Adams Alumni Center

KU Alumni AssociationFinance Board Report

May 6-7, 2016

The accompanying financial statements present financial results as of and for the nine months ending March 31, 2016. The statements reflect a modified cash-basis income from operations of $143,559 compared to a budgeted loss of $50,137 before capital expenditures – a positive budget variance of $193,696. Year-to-date capital expenditures of $29,900 compare favorably to year-to-date budgeted capital expenditures of $37,500. This leaves an overall year-to-date income from operations of $151,159 and an overall positive budget variance of $201,296.

Total net assets decreased by $1,818,274 from June 30, 2015 largely due to unrealized losses on our long-term investments managed by the KU Endowment Association. The market value of Endowment’s long-term investment pool has decreased by about 10.5% for the period July 1, 2015 to February 29, 2016, although this includes a year-to-date income distribution of roughly 3.5% per Endowment’s spending policy.

The overall positive operating budget variance of $143,559 reflects the following factors:REVENUES [negative variance of $120,175]:

Membership dues are short of budget by $100k and last year by $58k. Caveat: Recall that we budget and report dues revenue on a cash basis for internal purposes, so a portion of this revenue will be deferred at year-end for external reporting purposes.

Sales and commissions are behind budget in Banquet Services ($25k) and Merchandise Sales ($31k), although the category as a whole is trending better than last year. The negative variance for Merchandise Sales is attributed to a new, less favorable KU Bookstore merchandising agreement effective October 1.

Unrestricted contributions (principally Presidents Club) remain a bit short of budget ($19k) and last year, but this is a marked improvement from earlier in the year.

EXPENSES [positive variance of $313,871]: Salaries and benefits are under budget mostly because of “vacancy” credits. After reviewing

responsibilities and aligning duties to strategic priorities in several areas over the last few months, we have one open position yet to fill.

Professional fees reflect a negative variance of $44k, principally due to several unbudgeted items such as the new Member Access discount program, fees to livestream the McCollum Hall demolition, licensing the Concur travel and expense management tool, certain University overhead assessments, etc.

Printing still reflects a favorable budget variance – roughly $59k. Public relations and travel have a combined positive budget variance of about $64k, due to

continued staff efforts to control costs and reduced emphasis on visits to smaller out-of-state networks.

FY16 BUDGET ASSUMPTIONSThe proposed FY17 operating budget of $5.634 million is effectively flat, projecting a 0.58% decrease:

REVENUES: Our goal for overall Membership Dues was slightly decreased, primarily due to a planned

partnership with KU Endowment whereby every incoming freshman beginning with the Fall 2016 class will be made a member of the Student Alumni Association without charge and

partially in recognition of our year-to-date results. It will require a four year transition, but ultimately all KU undergraduates will be made members of the Student Alumni Association, a transformative change allowing us to better engage students and transition them to alumni.

Royalties were increased, due to guaranteed contractual payments and continued positive license plate revenues.

Overall Sales were decreased, mainly due to the aforementioned change in our merchandising agreement with the KU Bookstores.

Although there has been no official word, University Support of Records was decreased by 5% over FY16’s forecast in consideration of the current legislative environment and likely cuts to higher education funding. FY16 had been reduced 5% over FY15 for the same reasons.

Endowment Support is unchanged in total, although the grant for “grad gift” memberships is being reallocated to support the freshman Student Alumni Association membership noted above. The one-year “grad gift” memberships will be continued, however, printed Kansas Alumni magazines will not be provided as part of the free membership. Rather, the magazines will be available in an electronic format.

Investment income increases are consistent with recent endowment gifts. Otherwise, the KU Endowment distribution rate remained unchanged, based on the “Constant Growth” distribution policy (benchmark is CPI-U) and the fact that inflation was zero at the measurement date.

Unrestricted fund-raising (e.g. Presidents Club) was modestly increased based on recent trends and changes in strategic priorities that include new revenue development. Fund-raising event net revenues were projected to remain unchanged.

EXPENSES: Salaries and Benefits include modest performance and market increases, although the overall

expense is projected to decrease because (1) we project changes in strategic priorities will permit elimination of one full-time position and (2) of salary savings on certain positions.

Professional Fees and Freelance have increased consistent with (1) current trends and new, previously unbudgeted programs begun in FY16 and (2) new FY17 initiatives including but not limited new mobile apps for both students and alumni and professional fees associated with the Strategic Facilities Planning Task Force.

Public Relations/Hospitality in several areas actually decreased due to changes in strategic priorities, but the overall budget line increased due to anticipated programming enhancements and increases associated with the aforementioned Student Alumni Association memberships being provided to all incoming freshman for the Fall 2016 class.

Printing, Postage, and Calendar/Annual Report reflect decreases principally due to elimination of the printed magazine included in the “grad gift” memberships in favor of electronic delivery, expected inclusion of our annual report within Kansas Alumni rather than as a separate printed piece, and certain other efficiencies.

Travel in several areas was decreased due to changes in strategic priorities. Advertising shows an increase largely due to the planned reinstatement of selected parts of

the IMG contract discontinued during FY16.

In a more deliberate effort to increase our operating reserve, we are also budgeting for a positive bottom line ($50,000) for the first time in several years. This is in lieu of projecting break-even, while attempting to manage results for a positive net income (modified cash-basis) from operating activities.

Rock Chalk!

Jodi Nachtigal Dwight ParmanController Senior Vice-President for Finance and Human Resources