Students and Alumni Connect at “Dinner With Strangers”

Unlike its more traditional arrangements of long meeting tables or theater-style seating, the Lane Center’s Atkinson room was filled with leather couches and elegantly-decorated dinner tables on Monday, Feb. 26, for the first Frostburg State University (FSU) “Dinner with Strangers” event in several years.  This event brought together students and accomplished FSU alumni to share a meal and explore what it means to transition from undergraduate life into the professional world.

Years ago, “Dinner with Strangers” was conceptualized by FSU as a proposed event that would involve Frostburg graduates hosting fellow alumni at their homes across Maryland or across the country.  In theory, this type of event would strengthen the bond between FSU graduates by facilitating valuable networking and an opportunity to share stories of their mutual alma mater.  After its original conception, the tagline “Dinner with Strangers” eventually came to refer to a specific type of event that facilitated alumni interaction with current FSU students.  This type of event had been put on hold for several semesters, but it returned in February to rave reviews from participating students.  With the Atkinson room as the setting for the 2018 return of this event, students and alumni gathered to ask questions and learn about one another.

Prior to the evening event, “Dinner with Strangers” was strategically planned in advance to maximize the significance of the experience for student and alumni participants.  These arrangements began with Shannon Gribble, FSU Director of Alumni and Donor Relations, and Brooke Kirchner, FSU Alumni Relations and Events Specialist, conducting an interest survey with the students set to attend “Dinner with Strangers.”  For this event, student attendees were pulled from Frostburg’s Student Alumni Ambassadors (SAA) group.

SAA is a organized group of student volunteers that work throughout the year in assisting the FSU Office of Alumni Relations to foster stronger ties between FSU graduates and current students.  The pre-event survey that SAA members took before attending “Dinner with Strangers” asked them a variety of questions, including ones about their academic background and field of study, their organizational involvement on campus, and their career goals. Once the student participants had provided a detailed profile of their interests, FSU Alumni Relations worked behind to scenes to reach out to local alumni, and match student participants with alumni guests with whom they would share something in common.  Prior to the event, student and alumni participants had no prior knowledge of the guests they would be matched up with, which added some suspense and curiosity to the dinner.

Upon arrival, student and alumni participants were each given a name tag with a table number, and then had time to freely mingle, network, and introduce themselves.  As this was the first time that participants met, it was a valuable way for guests to get acquainted with one another.  After the initial introductory portion of the event, students and alumni guests took their seats at tables that were assigned to seat students with the alumni they had been matched with based upon their academic background and professional goals.  Former Allegany County Sheriff and current Democratic candidate for Allegany County Register of Wills, David Goad, sat with political science and psychology majors, and discussed a wide range of topics including job search tips, balancing full-time employment and graduate study, life as a political candidate, and transitioning between careers.  Other alumni guests included John O’Neal, a local secondary math teacher with Allegany County Public Schools, and Autumn Becker, Director of Workforce Development at Allegany College of Maryland.

At the conclusion of the evening, student participants, alumni guests, and university facilitators all felt that “Dinner with Strangers” had returned with resounding success.  Students left grateful for the wisdom and expertise shared by the FSU graduates they interacted with, and several alumni remarked how much they appreciated the opportunity to return to campus, meet current Frostburg students, and give back through knowledge they’ve learned.  “Dinner with Strangers” has officially returned to the FSU campus, and appears likely to continue as a signature bridge between students and alumni.