Release Date: March 19, 2003 This content is archived.
Alumni, in many ways, are the "constants" of a university.
By virtue of attending and graduating from the university, alumni serve in an important role for their alma mater. They support it through their time, energies, talents, affinities and financial contributions. They assist in recruiting students and offer advice to new graduates. They serve as ambassadors and role models for the university in both their professional and private lives. Alumni have a great investment in their university, and as that university gains prestige, the value of their degree and diploma increases.
As alumni succeed, so does the university. The roles of the alumnus and the university are deeply intertwined.
The important role that alumni play in the life of the University at Buffalo is underscored by makeup of the search committee named to search for the 14th president of UB. Alumni constitute a majority of the committee; 9 of the 17 members of the committee that will conduct the search for UB's next president are graduates of the institution, specifically representing our alumni and other important key constituencies.
Jeremy M. Jacobs, a 1960 UB graduate who is chair of the UB Council and of the UB Presidential Search Advisory Committee, announced the committee composition on March 13.
The committee represents a wide variety of interests related to UB, among them alumni, who will be represented by Willie R. Evans, a 1960 graduate of the School of Education and former president of the UB Alumni Association. Evans indicated that although he was selected as the voice of the alumni, the committee will benefit from the leadership of eight other graduates representing other areas, such as the UB Council, faculty and students.
"As alumni we look back fondly at our experience at UB, and we have a vested interest in promulgating the vision of the university," he says. "This is a matter of us wanting to give back to the institution."
In addition to Jacobs and Evans, other alumni serving on the committee include three additional members of the UB Council. They are: Jonathan A. Dandes (B.A.'74) president of Rich Baseball Operations, a former president of the UB Alumni Association and a member of the UB Alumni Association Board of Directors; Edmond J. Gicewicz (M.D.'56, B.A.'52), clinical assistant professor in the departments of Surgery and Orthopaedics in the UB School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, a former president of the UB Alumni Association and a member of the UB Alumni Association Board of Directors, and Gerald S. Lippes (J.D.'64), founder and senior partner of the law firm of Lippes, Silverstein, Mathias & Wexler, LLP.
In addition, alumni who work at UB will are serving on the committee. These members are:
Michael E. Cohen, (M.D.'61), chair of the UB Faculty Senate and professor of neurology and pediatrics in the UB medical school; Joyce E. Sirianni, Ph.D. (M.A.'67, B.A.'65), SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor in the CAS' Department of Anthropology; administrative representative Mary H. Gresham (Ph.D.'92), vice president, Office of Public Service and Urban Affairs and dean, Graduate School of Education; and staff representative Josephine A. Capuana (Ph.D.'93), director, Office of Honors and Scholars.
The committee will be responsible for finding a visionary new leader for UB to succeed President William R. Greiner, who announced he will step down as president of UB later this year. During his presidency the connection between UB and its alumni began to flourish and take on a substantive and meaningful role.
It is therefore fitting that alumni will play a pivotal and invaluable role in making the selection of the UB's next leader.
