by Kate Wright
The Ivy Chapter is the most recent addition to the Judson College Alumnae Association (JCAA). It is made up of alumnae from outside Alabama, and a few from within Alabama who do not have local alumnae chapters. As of the time of writing, it has gained 116 members since its start on August 1 but is steadily growing. As part of its activities, the new chapter is encouraging 24 current students who live out of state.
Peggy Darby ’90, Judson’s current director of development, is the president/coordinator of the chapter. Cathy Kelly Stolle ’05 of Virginia is the membership coordinator, and Patricia Darby Dennis ‘91 of Florida is the chair of the communications committee.
The idea for an alumnae chapter serving alum outside of Alabama has been in existence for at least 20 years, but it finally came to fruition this summer. When in discussion with Beth Poole, alumnae director, Darby decided that social media and technology may have made such a long-distance chapter possible. The JCAA requires that five or more alumnae come together to make a chapter. Darby reached out to eight potential members, and with the creation of a Facebook group, the numbers snowballed from there. Facebook group chat is also how the founding members made initial decisions about the chapter, such as the name. As Darby mentioned, “the Ivy Chain binds us all together,” and is an important symbol for Judson sisters. Facebook continues to be a main mode of communication for the members, though they will begin to use email more in the future.
One of the students the Ivy Chapter supports is Hope Langkow, a third-year senior who hails from Bothell, Wash., a suburb of Seattle. It takes her about 12 hours of travelling to fly from home to school. She says coming to Alabama was a “huge culture shock” to her, citing differences in slang, football teams, openness to spirituality, and humidity. She is enthused about the new alumnae chapter, which has already put together Labor Day treat bags for their students. Hope said, “All my friends from in state would always show off the goody bags they got from their local chapters and I have to admit it made me pretty jealous!” Apart from the current benefits, however, Hope is excited for her time in the JCAA post-graduation: “I used to joke that my alumnae meetings […] would consist of me sitting along in my living room telling my cats all about the good old days at Judson [….] it will be wonderful to have a chance to connect with the other students who experienced Mother Judson in the same fantastically different way I have!”
When Hope becomes a part of the Ivy Chapter, she will be alongside other alumnae from Washington, as well as members from California, North Carolina, Colorado and Pennsylvania, just to name a few. The chapter also boasts a member from Scotland, so they truly have no geographical bounds.
In the words of Kayla Smith ’07, the Ivy Chapter will “continue to encourage current students, academically and spiritually through cards, notes, emails and goodie bags at different times of the year.” They also hope to connect more with students on campus by attending out of state athletic events and having alumnae events during major Judson holidays. For instance, the Ivy Chapter is partnering with the Baldwin County chapter to help put on the 2nd Annual Alumnae Tailgate Party on Hockey Day, and there is the possibility that the Ivy Chapter ladies may host an event for their students during J-Day weekend, when many alumnae return to visit their alma mater. As a more long-term goal, Sandra Fowler ’82 is working on a way that students and alumnae can network with each other based on their career aspirations.
As Darby expressed, the Ivy Chapter will help “the out of state students to know how much they are appreciated and to know that there are alumnae outside of the state of Alabama that care about them. Hopefully this will open up the opportunity for alumnae and students to meet each other and widen the bonds of the Judson sisterhood!”