Revival of the African American Alumnae/i Association
AAAA News | AAAA Contacts
Dear Alumna/us,
We are writing to share the good news of the revitalization of the African American Alumnae/i Association (AAAA) at Simmons College. The Black Symposium held a year ago in April 2008, was a success in many ways. It served as a launching pad for the 4As organization and for seven of your fellow alumnae to commit themselves in service to support and engage current students and graduates of Simmons College.
The AAAA began in the early 1970s with a group of Boston area alumnae wanting to connect with current students, and evolved and flourished during the 80s and 90s. The group pushed for increased scholarship support, presence in campus decisions, and visibility. Following the Black Symposium in 2002, the group took a well-deserved pause, but the need for an actively engaging organization has been ever present since then.
Our goals for the organization include using input from black alumnae/i to develop and maintain involvement in the work of the college; increasing active participation in the AAAA; and increasing the visibility of black alumnae both in the AAAA and throughout the college. We are developing plans to host regional meetings and conference calls to facilitate these goals.
In these tough economic times, the AAAA did not resurface to make a plea for monetary support of the college, but do want to highlight that the Elizabeth Rawlins Scholarship depends on the support of people like you. We want to minimize the impact that this downturn has on our students of color. We hope your engagement with the AAAA will include gifts to the college as well as leadership and guidance for its current students.
You should have received information from the college about the opportunity to double your donations through a special challenge grant during the month of April.
There are currently 1,405 African American alumnae/i, 60 percent of whom reside in Massachusetts. We want to invite those who can make it, to a meeting in Boston at the College to discuss and focus on your feedback. Please join us on Saturday, May 9, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. If you plan to join us, please RSVP to Hannah at SimmonsAAAA@gmail.com.
We welcome your feedback and look forward to speaking with many of you in the days ahead. We plan to host additional regional meetings in the months ahead, for those who are too far to attend this first gathering.
Please visit Alumnet and explore the recent news of Simmons College. The Executive Board can be reached by their contact information found on the AAAA web page.
Revitalizing the AAAA ensures the African-American legacy at Simmons College. We are excited for you to be a part of sustaining this legacy.
AAAA Leadership:
The mission of the African American Alumnae Revival Committee, under the aegis of the April 2008 Black Symposium was to revive the 4 A's, the African American Alumnae/i Association. This was accomplished and the association has re-established itself. The officers are listed here. The Association is in the midst of identifying its twenty-first century purpose and goals; raising scholarship funds for current undergraduate students; and connecting with the student body and you, our wide group of alumnae/i. Over the next few months, we ask those who are not registered to register with Alumnet. Take the step of contacting one of the officers to share your expectations. The Boston Signature Jazz event will occur in spring 2009. The Black Symposium is on track to occur every five years in alignment with reunion programs beginning in 2013. Look forward to enhancements of our website in the New Year. Rev. Melinda Weekes Returns to Gospel Radio
Click here for more information about the Simmons College Radio show.
Simmons College Black Alumnae/i Symposium 2008
The Power of Our Presence
Past, Present, and Future
April 2008 
Click here for coverage of the weekend's events. [Click here to read about and view the photos from the 2005 Black Alumnae/i Symposium.]
Click here to find out more about the African American Contributions to Simmons (AACS) documentation project.
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