Alumni and family weekends are incredibly exciting times for your college or university. Not only are they a great way to encourage student engagement, but they also offer chances for you to connect with parents and bring in potential donations from alumni. Furthermore, these weekends are an excellent way to foster a sense of connection between current and former students, allowing for increased interaction across the community by strengthening alumni relations.
During these weekends, it’s important to provide an array of diverse activities to ensure that there’s something for everyone. Use event calendar software to centralize those events and make it as easy as possible for everyone to figure out what events they want to attend and when. Also, consider how campus maps can improve many of your events.
Are you looking for ways to make the most of your alumni and family weekend? Check out these eleven exciting ideas to help you contact parents, students, and alumni.
1. Interactive Campus Tours
An interactive campus tour offers a unique experience for alumni and families, who aren’t on the campus every day. Alumni can explore the campus and learn more about what has changed since their days at your school, reminiscing as they revisit some of their favorite spots and checking out new opportunities for current students. Families, on the other hand, can get a better feel for what their students are doing every day, where they hang out, and what spots on campus are worth visiting and revisiting. Even current students can learn more about what the campus has to offer as they explore.
An interactive campus map provided by Concept3D is ideal for universities that want to have an engaging alumni weekend. With these maps, alumni and families can explore the campus on their own timeline without needing to wait for guided tours. Furthermore, they can interact directly with the elements on the map, get their questions answered, and feel a deeper sense of connection to the campus–all at a convenient time for them.
2. Alumni Networking Brunch
An alum networking brunch is the perfect opportunity for alumni to network, reconnect with old classmates, and meet current students and faculty. Those connections can prove essential for current students, who may be able to interact with people in their future fields, as well as alumni looking for new opportunities. With a networking brunch on alumni weekend, you allow everyone to come together in a low-stress venue where they can easily interact, connect, and chat.
3. Family Picnic and Outdoor Games
A family-friendly picnic is one of the first things many think of when imagining an alumni weekend or parent weekend on campus. Make your picnic stand out by supplying everything students and their families need to make it exceptional. Provide lawn games, host live music, and invite local food trucks to create a relaxing, enjoyable atmosphere of campus life that’s as convenient as possible for families and alumni who could be visiting from anywhere in the country. Keep things moving by hosting games for everyone to participate in.
4. Faculty Panels and Workshops
Your alumni weekend is a great opportunity to host FAQ panels and workshops led by faculty or alum experts. These events can:
- Focus on industry trends
- Allow professors and faculty members to share their academic research
- Cover relevant professional topics
Current students will eagerly attend these weekend events to learn more about what’s happening in the industries they want to join after graduation. At the same time, alumni will have the chance to connect with other experts in their fields, share their expertise, and meet those students.
5. University Sports Events
Major athletics and sporting events are a huge draw for many alumni. They may be eager to support their former teams, attend a tailgate event, see what the teams are accomplishing, and cheer them on. There’s nothing quite like being in the stands for a big game. By scheduling your alumni weekend around a big game in one of the major sports, you can bring more alumni to the campus.
What is the most popular sport at your school? Is it basketball? Soccer? Football? Offer discounted tickets for athletic events to alumni and family members to encourage them to attend the game and cheer on your school.
6. Community Service Events
Alumni and family weekends are the perfect time to draw in more participants in community service events. Host a major event that reflects your campus’s values or the causes that are most near and dear to your university’s heart.
You could:
- Schedule a smaller campus cleanup event
- Host a carnival for at-risk children in the area
- Encourage everyone to come together for a food drive
The possibilities are endless. Consider what the deeper needs are in your local community or nearby. For example, after a major natural disaster, you could host a drive that collects bottled water, canned goods, and other much-needed items for those affected. By publicizing it well ahead of your event, you can increase engagement and interest while showcasing your campus’s commitment to helping your community.
7. Campus Arts Showcase
Highlight student and alumni talents in the arts through a campus arts showcase or open house. Consider:
- Art exhibitions
- Theater performances
- Musical recitals
- Special edition literary magazines or newspapers
Encourage students and alumni to submit their artistic accomplishments well before the alumni and family weekend, then put together a showcase that displays everything your arts-focused students and alumni can accomplish. This celebration of student success and creativity across the campus community allows you to highlight students who may often be overlooked and give those interested in the arts a chance to connect with one another.
8. Historic Campus Walking Tour
Take your alumni and family members on a historic walking tour of the campus. Showcase the university’s history, traditions, and significant landmarks to create a sense of pride and connection. You can include many of those landmarks on your interactive campus map. But when you have a campus expert to walk your alumni and family members through the campus, they can help bring that history to life and create a deeper sense of connection with the university’s history.
9. Family Fun Fair or Festival
Fairs and festivals are fun for all ages. Create a carnival-style event with booths, rides, and activities for children and families. Many of your college students will be delighted to embrace their inner child as they enjoy kettle corn, cotton candy, candy apples, and other favorite fair foods. Invite clubs and organizations across campus to host their own booths with games ranging from duck grabs to basketball toss, ring toss, and more. You can also connect with local party rental locations and vendors to bring in games and rides that will be sure to delight all the visitors to your campus.
10. Outdoor Movie Night
The fun doesn’t have to end when the sun goes down. Give your families, alumni, and students a quieter way to celebrate the evening by hosting an outdoor movie night event. Rent or buy a large screen or project a movie onto a blank stretch of building. You can do this on a large scale, even utilizing your football stadium. Alternatively, you can conduct the event on a smaller scale by breaking down movies into individual dorms or offering movies for different tastes in different areas of the campus. This relaxing evening is a great way for families or alumni to hang out with current students in a lower-pressure environment: the ideal way to calm down after a busy and exciting weekend.
11. Charity Run or Walk
A 5K run or walk is a great way to draw in alumni, community members, and family members. You likely have miles of trails or roads around campus, making it the ideal place for a run. By making it an event for charity, you can further increase interest.
Consider options that will allow you to ramp up the fun on your run. For example, if your alumni and family weekend is around a holiday, you may want to focus on that theme as you set up your plans for the run. Other fun ideas for your alumni & family weekend include:
- Color runs
- Foam or bubble runs
- Running in costumes/themed outfits
Find a theme that celebrates your campus, your students, or the cause you’re running for. Then mark off your pathways, and set your racers to running across their chosen paths.
Seamlessly Organize Your Alumni Weekend With Concept3D
Creating a full schedule of events for your family and alumni weekend decreases frustration, increases enjoyment, and encourages alumni and family members to participate in those events. Are you ready to start planning an incredible event?
Concept3D can help you manage your event. Our event calendar software allows you to double-check the timing of those important events to ensure they do not overlap. It also provides an excellent tool for sharing your schedule so that no one misses out on an event they would like to attend.
Furthermore, our interactive campus maps can help guide family members and alumni around campus and provide them with more information about how to attend those important alumni events. Schedule a demonstration today to learn more, or contact us to ask any questions you have about how to make the most of our software for your campus.