President Richard C. Levin has asked Vice President and Secretary Linda Koch Lorimer to assume responsibility as the liaison officer to the Association of Yale Alumni (AYA) and the Yale Alumni Magazine, beginning Jan. 1.
This transfer of alumni affairs to the Secretary's Office will coincide with the Dec. 30 retirement of Vice President for Development and Alumni Affairs Terry Holcombe.
As vice president and secretary, Ms. Lorimer already serves as the University officers' principal liaison to two alumni groups: the Yale Corporation, the University's governing body (on which she served as an alumni-elected trustee 1990-93); and the University Council, a group that advises the Yale officers on major issues facing the University.
Ms. Lorimer will be the University officer who works with the AYA, the central organization for alumni activities and programs. Established in 1972 and guided by a Board of Governors and Executive Director, the AYA directs and supports a worldwide network of approximately 170 Yale clubs and associations. Under the AYA's auspices, these clubs aid in the recruitment of prospective students; sponsor scholarships and community service fellowships; and offer a variety of social, cultural, educational and career-enhancement programs. The AYA organizes Yale College reunions and associated class activities, and sponsors several educational programs, including the annual University Seminars taught by Yale faculty members and the Great Teachers at Yale video series. It has been embarking on a series of increasingly ambitious continuing education programs for Yale graduates, which Ms. Lorimer will continue to promote.
As part of its mission to provide "a channel of mutual communication between the alumni and the University," the AYA holds semi-annual Assemblies, which bring alumni delegates to campus for discussions on Yale-related issues as well as meetings with University officers. Another AYA program, "A Day with Yale in ...," brings University faculty and administrators to Yale clubs throughout the nation and the world for talks on campus life. The AYA's home site on the World Wide Web (www.yale.edu/aya/) offers graduates a central source for campus news and alumni information.
One of Vice President Lorimer's first responsibilities as head of alumni affairs will be assisting in the appointment of a successor to AYA Director Eustace Theodore, who recently left Yale to become president of the national Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE).
Ms. Lorimer -- herself a Yale alumna, with a J.D. from the Law School (1977) -- will also serve as the officers' liaison to the Yale Alumni Magazine, an editorially and financially independent publication that was founded in 1891. In recent years, President Levin has written a regular column in the magazine, which is the oldest Ivy League alumni publication.
She also oversees the Office of Public Affairs and recently named B. Jay Cooper, former deputy press secretary in the White House under Reagan and Bush, as director of that office. Noting that "public affairs is only one aspect of Yale's communication opportunities," President Levin said that linking alumni affairs and public affairs under Ms. Lorimer's "portfolio" underscores the importance placed on the dialogue between the University and its graduates.
As head of Yale's city initiatives, Vice President Lorimer established the University's Office of New Haven Affairs, which has launched the Yale Homebuyers Program, the Buy in New Haven Initiative and other city-campus partnerships. Under her guidance, Yale also played a major role in refinancing the Shubert Theatre, creating the Downtown Special Service District, securing a $2.4 million H.U.D. grant for the Dwight neighborhood and keeping the Pilot Penn Tennis Tournament in New Haven.
Ms. Lorimer will continue to direct the University's New Haven affairs until May, when nationally renowned urban developer Bruce Alexander will take up his post as Vice President and Director of New Haven and State Affairs. (See related stories, page 1.)
"There is no one in our communities -- neither in New Haven nor in the extended Yale family -- who could have accomplished as much with our New Haven Initiative as Linda has," said Mr. Levin, at an Aug. 28 gathering of state, city and campus representatives. "But Yale will gain from a re-direction of her energy and talent."
Calling the appointment of Mr. Alexander a "home run for Yale," Ms. Lorimer told the gathering: "When I came back to the University to serve as Secretary, I thought I knew about the city, having spent most of my adult life here. But in these past four years, in working to promote Yale-New Haven partnerships, I have learned an extraordinary amount. ...
"Throughout the greater community, I have seen example after example of individuals who have gone beyond any sense of duty or jobs to think from their hearts about how our city can be improved," she added. "I am grateful to the many of you who have given me an extraordinary 'continuing education': insight into how Yale can be a better neighbor and how those of us in the University community can make a greater difference in the city's future."
Ms. Lorimer has held several key administrative posts at Yale. She was assistant and associate general counsel (1978-79 and 1979-83) and served as the University's youngest-ever associate provost (1983-87) before leaving to serve as president of Randolph-Macon Woman's College in Lynchburg, Virginia. She returned to campus as University Secretary in 1993 and was named vice president in 1995.
"What is invisible to most of you is the excellence Linda brings to her 'day job': her role as one of my close advisers," said President Levin at the announcement. "I know that all of you who work with Linda will, come next spring, miss her daily involvement with New Haven issues. ... I personally look forward to seeing her more often in Woodbridge Hall."