Reunions 2009: Jobs, economy in the spotlight

The Alumni Council Careers Conference has been a fixture on the Reunions calendar for nearly a decade, and this year, against a backdrop of economic uncertainty, alumni are taking a keen interest in the event’s theme: “How to Tune Up Your Career in a Down Market.”

Alumni Lisa Baar Baird ’89, an executive recruiter at Spencer Stuart, and John Jannarone ’03, who writes the “Heard on the Street” column for The Wall Street Journal, will open the May 29 conference, offering their assessments of the changing job market. Participants then will split into groups of about a dozen people and meet with career consultants to discuss topics ranging from assessing skills to setting career objectives. Organizer Jolanne Stanton ’77 said the event aims to help alumni in all stages of their careers, not just job seekers.

Elsewhere at Reunions, the economy will be a popular topic. The alumni-faculty forums, held Friday and Saturday mornings and Friday afternoon, will delve into the status of the bailouts, regulation on Wall Street, investing strategies for uncertain times, and America’s role in the global economy. (Forums on race, politics, medicine, and athletics also are scheduled.)

PAW will sponsor a panel titled “Money, Greed, and the Economy: Views from the Fourth Estate,” featuring Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and television commentator George F. Will *68; The Nation editor and publisher Katrina vanden Heuvel ’81; and other alumni journalists, at 10:30 a.m. Saturday in McCosh 50.

President Tilghman will hold her annual conversation with alumni Saturday at 10:30 a.m. in Richardson Auditorium. The P-rade begins at 2 p.m., and the Class of 1984 has agreed to join the marching order inside FitzRandolph Gate in hopes of speeding up the procession. The University Orchestra will perform at Finney and Campbell fields at 8 p.m., followed by fireworks at 9:15 p.m.  

Photos: T. Kevin Birch

As part of its 40th-reunion “Magical Mystery Tour,” the CLASS OF 1969 is hosting an afternoon of magic performances, open to all reuners, in Dod-McCormick Courtyard at 2 p.m. Friday.

Nearly 90 percent of the CLASS OF 1944 served in the military, and the class will salute its veterans at Reunions, with special emphasis on the 22 classmates killed in action during World War II. Relatives of eight of those 22 men, including two sons of fallen alumni, will be on hand for a Friday afternoon memorial service at Trinity Church on Mercer Street. In the P-rade, the 65th-reunion contingent will be led by the U.S. Army band Pershing’s Own.

The CLASS OF 1979 has taken the lead in organizing Singles Mingle, the first singles reception at Reunions, with the cooperation of major reunion classes from 1974 through 1994. All singles are welcome to enjoy food, drink, music, and conversation at Chancellor Green. The reception begins Friday at 8:30 p.m.

Several classes have scheduled Reunions service projects in Trenton. The CLASS OF 1984 will spend a day working on renovations at the River City Community School, while the CLASS OF 1999 will work with the nonprofit Isles to help refurbish a former textile mill. The ASSOCIATION OF PRINCETON GRADUATE ALUMNI will partner with Martin House to build homes for low-income families.