Undergraduate President’s Report – Caroline Shifke ’12
The Ivy Club has experienced an exciting and action-packed, though relatively brief, 2011 academic year to date. Our semester commenced with a Fall Bicker that brought in seven new members, raising our numbers to approximately 140 undergraduate members. As always, each new Ivy member brings something unique to the club. The group includes a professional figure skater, a rugby player, a dancer, a rower, a singer, a soccer player, someone from as far away as France, and another from as close as Lawrenceville. They’ve been embraced warmly by the existing membership, all of whom have been thrilled to share our club with these new friends.
As midterms approach, the Griffin Wing and New Library have been seeing even more traffic than usual. It is rare to walk into one of the beautiful spaces and not see a familiar face, studying diligently under one of our new Chinese lamps or reclined comfortably on a couch with a book. In addition to these more studious endeavors, members still most frequently come to the club as a location to escape the stressful confines of the classroom. One can find half of the membership outside, eating lunch or throwing around a football any time the sun looks like it will even consider shining. Indeed, one recent Sunday afternoon, our Community Service Chairs organized a trip to go apple picking. Afterwards, half of the apples were brought to a nearby shelter while the rest were shared amongst the club. If the clouds threaten our outdoor pursuits, the members turn to the new ping-pong table as an increasingly favorite pastime. Even those like me, who have no handeye coordination, enjoy merely watching this surprisingly entertaining spectator sport.
Undergraduate President’s Report The Ivy Club has experienced an exciting and action-packed, though relatively brief, 2011 academic year to date. Our semester commenced with a Fall Bicker that brought in seven new members, raising our numbers to 6 On The Vine The Ivy Club Newsletter One of the most thrilling aspects of the current Ivy undergraduate experience is the pioneer Leadership Program introduced this year. With the incredible support and guidance of Ivy alumnus Jan Buck ’67, the undergraduates have been establishing a program geared towards creating a better understanding of the elusive idea of leadership. The program consists of approximately 10 student-moderated sessions with world leaders, such as Christie Whitman, David Petraeus and, Ivy’s own Ricardo Poma ’68 and Bill Ford ’79. Through these interactive sessions, the undergraduates will be able to engage the concept of leadership in a wide variety of manifestations in the attempt to create a nuanced working definition leadership. The undergraduates feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to both participate in and help create such a novel program.
The Leadership Program has highlighted one other favorite element of the Ivy Club experience. Through all of the graduate support and involvement, it is readily clear that membership in Ivy lasts far past undergraduate days. One of the things I love most about the Ivy Club is that it truly is a community to which you belong for your whole life. We are all so excited that homecoming is approaching, and look forward to the opportunity to meet even more graduate members of the Club. I hope to see you all in November!