A once-quiet nook outside the chaos of the Learning Commons, the corner of the fourth floor has been overtaken by foot traffic and the chatter of students looking to hang out and catch up with the Alumni Office staff. So what exactly does an office that focuses on Latin graduates do for current Latin students?

For the first time in 13 years, the Alumni Office and its staff look very different, but their objective remains unchanged. The Latin Alumni Office has been a crucial part of the school community for decades, serving as a bridge between the school and former students. The office works to keep alumni informed and engaged through social media, reunions, and volunteer opportunities such as Life After Latin.

Victor Agapay, the new Director of Alumni Engagement, expanded on his office’s objectives, specifying the financial aspects of his role. He said, “There is also a component of keeping alumni engaged enough so they are inspired to give back to the school, whatever the initiatives we are working towards at the time: scholarships, faculty compensation, or physical plans.”

As the Alumni Office builds a network outside the walls of the Upper School, they are also building a strong network inside the building. It’s not very often that underclassmen at a high school can be found hanging out and chatting with the alumni engagement team, but on any given day, plenty of students are found stopping by the office in its new location on the fourth floor of the Upper School.

Sophomore Sofie Munive can often be found socializing in the alumni office. “I love the office because it’s an awesome space for me to vent, and I always feel supported,” she said. “They also got me a law opportunity this summer.”

Alumni Engagement Coordinator Ashyln Pope said, “Our role is to connect our alumni network with not only each other but back with the school. [That] is why with our role, I think it's so important being in this office in this building, ‘cause we’re so connected with the Upper School.”

A new office location, two floors up from the previous location on the second floor, isn’t the only change to the Alumni Office, however. With two fresh sets of eyes and a vision for the future, the Alumni Office has big plans to build on the strong foundation left by former Alumni Engagement Director Stephanie Chu and Director of Alumni Programming and Archivist Teresa Sutter.

“[Ms. Chu and Ms. Sutter] had such a strong relationship with [alumni],” Ms. Pope said. “First of all, huge props to them for setting up this foundation for us, but secondly, we’re hoping that alumni are open to building relationships with us.”

While Mr. Agapay and Ms. Pope are wrapping up their first year at Latin this spring, their paths leading to this moment looked very different.

Mr. Agapay previously worked in Chicago in the basketball world, spending time with the Bulls in player development before moving back to his home state of Florida. He spent 12 years coaching basketball at his high school alma mater and working in alumni relations before coming to Latin.

Ms. Pope, on the other hand, arrived at Latin after graduating from Lake Forest College with an environmental science degree. She then spent one year working in the Lake Forest College Student Activities and Leadership Office. Enjoying the community component of her job, alumni engagement seemed like a perfect way to stay in the education sphere.

Both now fully immersed in the Latin community, Mr. Agapay explained that their main short-term goal is to improve communication with alumni. “We can have a great amount of good stuff going on at the school, but if we can't get it out in front of alumni, it doesn’t matter.”

“We've done a massive audit of contact information,” he said. “If we don't have the right emails and the right phone numbers, we can't get [alums] the right information.”

As for long-term goals, Ms. Pope has been working on reaching specific groups in the alumni community. She said, “I'm really hoping to connect better with our college students and our younger alumni who are in their 20s.”

As Ms. Pope aims to reach all different groups of alumni, the office hopes to build a stronger alumni network that encourages participation in a variety of spaces in the Latin community. To do that, the Alumni Office is working to find events that interest all different groups of alumni, from sports to the arts.

Mr. Agapay hopes to get alumni back onto campus to interact with students and serve as mentors and role models. He said, “In my ideal world, I would like to flood the school with alumni in various ways and in whatever capacity they can give back.”

Events such as the alumni leadership breakfast or Life After Latin serve as an opportunity for alumni to impact current students without making a financial contribution. Mr. Agapay said, “[The alumni interactions] help kids to understand this is a really good place; you’re really privileged to go here.”

All these goals lead to one of the most important pieces of the Alumni Office: giving back to the school to help the next generation of Latin alumni prepare for the world. To do that, the Alumni Office is working to not only preserve the history of the school by sharing it with students, but also create relationships for the future.

Mr. Agapay said, “It's interacting and building relationships, so when you graduate, it's not ‘the Alumni Office’ calling you—it’s Victor or Ashlyn, people you know.”

Senior Danny Goodman said, “They have been great since the day I met them. Not only did they help me with my application for an internship, but they have been a sounding board for many of my ideas.”

Danny said, “Latin is fortunate to have Mr. Agapay and [Ms. Pope], and I am excited to see what they do in the future.”