I came to Chapman University from a small town in Oregon without ever having visited the campus. I was drawn to Chapman by a then new member of the Office of Admissions, now Vice Chancellor Mike Pelly, and his description of the school, its dance program and some strange sport they liked to play in Southern California called lacrosse. I recall asking if they played that on horses, but I digress.

I found in Chapman a second home. It was a place where I could (and did) thrive and grow and that experience is why I continued to want to be an active part of the university that gave me so much. Applying to be a member of the Alumni Association Board of Directors appealed to me as a way to not only attend campus events, but to be directly involved and truly give back. As a board, we have been actively working to increase alumni involvement at Chapman. To that end, I am proud to be the committee chairperson for one of the newest and most exciting ventures of the Alumni Association Board of Directors,
the Chapman Alumni Ambassadors
.

I have long seen on campus those students in their red blazers and I always knew those were the people who undergraduates could go to with questions and concerns about campus life. That is what we as Alumni Ambassadors strive to be for those of us who are no longer on campus every day, but want to have some distinct role in the university. The Alumni Ambassadors are a group of alumni who will have an active role in and show a uniform alumni presence at all significant campus events. We hope that soon we will be easily recognized, through our uniform of white tops, black bottoms and red name tags, as the people alumni can come to with questions about how to become a more active part of the Chapman Family.

If you’re interested in becoming an Alumni Ambassador,
just fill out our quick and easy online application
. As an Alumni Ambassador, you will be asked to volunteer at one campus event during the school year and attend at least one campus event per year. There will also be an informational training session so that you can be up to date and ready to answer questions about things that may have changed at Chapman since your days as a student.

We are excited about the possibilities this group will have to be an integral part of Chapman and hope that soon the campus will be flooded with hundreds of Alumni Ambassadors.

Apply to be an Alumni Ambassador »

connie-benson-headshot-12-2-13Connie Benson ‘93

Chairperson, Alumni Ambassadors
Alumni Association Board of Directors