Photo by: Kenny Coles

The Alumni Association hosted a party for the class of 2013 last Wednesday.

“It’s a chance to celebrate the class of 2013 before midterms and the rest of school takes over,” Alumni Association Director Rick Adleman said. “The party is for the Alumni Association to welcome these grads into the organization.”

When a student graduates from CMU, they automatically become a part of the association.

“I wanted to make it a one-stop shop for what a graduate would need,” Adleman said.

The event included different vendors: hotels, grocery stores, reality offices, banks, the bookstore, and more. The vendors were geared for graduate parties or for life after graduating CMU.

The party was a place to reminisce about the time spent at CMU and to meet the other members of the graduating class.

During the party, the Alumni Association gave out prizes to some of those who attended. Smaller items such as flash drives were given out, but the big prize was a 32” TV. The Alumni Association also had a keg for the graduates to share.

“The Alumni Association tries to keep the institution and the Alums connected as a group,” Adleman said.

The association puts on a large number of events for CMU. One event is a freshman send off barbecue in Denver. The event is geared toward prospective students for the next year.

Coupled with this event is a mentorship program, where alumni pair up with students and help them get though their college years. They can ask their mentor for help on just about anything, but mainly it is directed to help the student navigate CMU.

Graduates can join two different chapters. One is located in Denver and the other in Montrose. Neither of the chapters has dues, but each encourages its members to give back to CMU in any way they can. Typically, this means volunteering at CMU events, but another common option is to donate financially to the university.