Last night, the 2010-2011 Student Alumni Council’s year officially came to an end at the annual SAC Appreciation Dinner, held this year at the Patten House.  It has been a great year for the Student Alumni Council, thanks in part to the amazing 2-year presidency of Chantel Christian, who will be graduating in UTC (sad for us, happy for her), and the other great leaders. During the “Italian themed” dinner, we were fortunate to have UTC First Lady Dr. Carolyn Thompson, UTC Vice Chancellor of University Advancement Bob Lyon, UTC Alumni Board President Tom Losh and UTC Alumni Director Jayne Holder on hand to offer up words of thanks and also to act as our servers for the evening.

Each year at the Appreciation Dinner we announce some special awards, and I thought it fitting to announce them here as well. Once again, congratulations to all of you.

2011-2012 UTAA Joe & Pat Johnson Student Alumni Scholarship ($2,500) -
KINSEY ELLIOTT

This scholarship sponsored the UT Alumni Association is named after and endowed by former UT (system) president, Dr. Joe Johnson, and his wife. It is awarded to one SAC member who has illustrated incredible service to the Student Alumni Council (achieved a minimum of 100 SAC points) , excelled academically (3.0 or higher cumulative GPA), recognized by other faculty and staff at UTC, and who have shown tremendous commitment to the University through participation in other campus activities.

SAC Pin Levels

The Student Alumni Council recognizes those members who have committed much of their time to SAC by evidence of them achieving the various point levels in the program. Below are the members who reached the respective levels during this academic year.

• Level 1 (200-399 points) – Abby Agnew, Erika McGaha, Shelby Parker and Kristina Williams
• Level 2 (400-599) - BayLee Long

While there is not a point level above Level 3 (800 points and higher), we also wanted to pay tribute to the two SAC members who reached 1,000+ points this year. Chantel Christian earned 1,282 points and Trina McLean earned 1,007 points during their SAC careers. What an amazing accomplishment and a new SAC record!

Specialty Awards & Honors

Each year, SAC awards special honors in recognition of their program, general membership and overall achievements as voted upon by the general membership. This year’s winners include the following.

• Most Improved Ambassador –  KRISTINA WILLIAMS
• Favorite Program – ANGEL TREE (Allie Aiken)
• Most Likely to be Late for a Meeting – JORDAN TAYLOR
• Most Likely to be an SAC Adviser – BAYLEE LONG
• MOC award (Best School Spirit) – TRINA McLEAN
• SAC Sprit – CHANTEL CHRISTIAN
• Member of the Year – KAILA GUNTER

2011-2012 SAC Executive Officers

The following members were voted by the general membership to assume the leadership positions for 2011-2012 academic year.

• President – BAYLEE LONG
• Vice-President – ERIKA McGAHA
• Treasurer - KAYLA DOTSON
• Secretary – ALLIE MESSIER

For the first time in many, many years, Chantel Christian, as president, had to use her executive position to break ties for both president and vice president.  While these positions have been granted to the members listed above, there is discussion to amend the by-laws for next year in order to ensure the voting procedures are done with accuracy and that the executive officer makeup is established for the supervision and leadership of the SAC program as a whole.

One last fun photo…

We also may have some alumni from various career fields. Get your foot in the door with great discussions and lunch.

If you would like to attend, please fill out the RSVP form below.

Fee: $1 (submit at door), free for all current members of The FAM (must show FAM card)

Event Registration for Taste for Tomorrow - Real World 101 - RW101-Taste

Looking for Direction?

Pros give tips to improve your job interview skills

The unemployment rate fell 0.4 percentage points to 9.4 percent in December 2010, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

With nearly 10 percent of the population in need of work, applicants will need to stand out in order to be noticed. There are still an estimated five job seekers for each available position.

One way to get a recruiter to take notice is to give a killer interview.

Several Chattanooga-area human-resources managers shared tips on how to impress a potential boss.

1. Know the job, and know the company. “If I’ve got a position open for a nuclear engineer,” said Laura Paddock, talent acquisition manager at TVA, “do they understand that I’m a utility. Do they understand what TVA does? We’re always surprised to hear people say, ‘I don’t really know a lot about you, other than that you make electricity.’ ”

2. Be willing to do what it takes. Brad Pope, vice president of human resources at Memorial Health Care System, said knowing that a candidate has the willingness to do the job for which he or she is interviewing is the No. 1 thing he looks for during a meeting. “Do they have the willingness even if the CEO comes in and says: ‘Today you’ll be managing a project, and tomorrow you’ll be sweeping the floor?’ ”

3. Be on time. Or early. And if you’re kept waiting, be gracious about it. “We’ve had candidates who have complained,” said Kathy Reid-Papson, talent acquisition manager at BlueCross Blue Shield of Tennessee.

4. Be honest about your experience. “Don’t lie, either on your resume or during the interview,” Paddock said. “Don’t oversell yourself.” Speak accurately to the roles you had in previous jobs.

5. Turn off the mobile phone, or better yet, leave it in the car. You want to focus on the interview, not on what is ringing or vibrating in your pocket.

6. Address the interviewer by the correct name. “It seems like many candidates don’t go to the trouble, when setting up an interview, of listening to hear with whom they’ll be speaking,” said Reid-Papson. “Maybe it’s one person, maybe it’s three, but they need to know who they are and what their titles are, so ask that when the interview is being set up.”

Read the remaining six tips HERE.

The opening/prelimary rounds will be played on campus on Wednesday through Friday, November 10-12, and the semi and final rounds of each division will be played at First Tennessee Pavilion prior to the Mocs home football game versus Samford on Saturday, November 13.

Prizes will be available to the 1st and 2nd place teams in each division.

FEE TO PLAY: $5/team

REGISTRATION FORM: Download the form at http://www.utcalumni.com/sac/documents/2010CornholeRegistrationForm.docx

Limited space is available in each division. No more than 3 teams per student organization in each division.

The UTC Student Alumni Council works in conjunction with the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services to provide less fortunate children with holiday gifts.  “Angels” will be available for individuals and/or groups beginning November 8th. Last year UTC brought in the largest amount of gifts for the largest amount of children in our program’s history. Let’s see if we can beat it, while at the same time helping children experience the celebration and joy of the holiday season.

Be on the lookout for the SAC Angel Tree tables at the University Center or stop by the Patten Alumni House to pick up your holiday “angel(s).”

Step By Step:

1) Pick an “angel” at the SAC table in the UC and decorate an ornament to help us decorate our Angel Tree.

2) Purchase your gift(s) for your sponsored child.

3) Wrap your gifts and label them with the child’s ID number.

4) Turn in your wrapped and labeled gifts to the Alumni Office in the Patten House on the corner of Oak and Palmetto. The deadline to turn in the gifts is Wednesday, December 3.

For more information, you can:

1. Visit the Alumni Office on the 2nd floor of the Patten House at 801 Oak Street (corner of Oak and Palmetto)
2. Email Allie Aiken (allison-aiken@mocs.utc.edu), the SAC Angel Tree Chair
3. Call the Alumni Office at 423/425-4785

On October 15th, Homecoming Friday, the 2010-2011 Student Alumni Council will be hosting a reunion for ALL classes of former UAC/SAC members. We will have special guest speakers and gifts for all who attend.  The reunion gathering will take place at the Patten House (home of the UTC Alumni Office) on the corner of Oak and Palmetto at 5:30 p.m. and will include hors d’oeuvres.

Come reminisce over all the great events and activities that our group has hosted over the years, including Reno Night, the SAA/SF (now CASE ASAP) conferences, Oozeball, Angel Tree and Homecoming!

Each former UAC/SAC member is allowed to bring one guest.

RSVP to sac@utc.edu.
For more information, please contact Patrick Miles at 423-425-4785 or by email.

Learn more about other 2010 Homecoming activities by visiting www.utc.edu/homecoming.

All members of The FAM are welcome to attend.  Recruit some of your friends to join the FAM as well and they too can participate and enjoy some good old burgers and dogs.

We’ll also be hosting a cornhole and/or bocce tournament, passing out our new Mocs Scrapbook Journals and new FAM member cards.

It’ll be a good time, as long as you’re there, so get a new calendar for the school year and mark off this date and time.

See ya in August!

RSVP on the UTC Collegiate Link event site (you’ll need to login with your UTC ID).

Did you know that some of the dorms here at UTC have extra-long and not standard twin size beds?

The FAM would like to introduce you to Residence Hall Linens – a convenient source for ordering all of your campus living needs. The FAM has partnered with Residence Hall Linens to provide The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga students and families with a convenient, affordable way to ensure you have sheets that will fit the extra-long mattresses in our dorms.

Beds in Boling, Johnson, and Lockmiller Apartments have these XL mattresses. The Residence Hall Linens program has all your campus living needs, from extra long twin sheets and comforters to matching towels and storage items.

Proceeds from this program go back to The FAM for programming around campus. Shipping is free for all Value Pak orders, and there are more than 23 color combinations available so turning your dorm in to a comforting home away from home is easy. Plus, linens are delivered to your home during the summer so you don’t have to worry about waiting in line at the store.  Order now for the best selection – popular colors can sell out quickly! Please visit the RHL website http://www.rhl.org/utc

So, what’s changing? Quite a bit actually.

Structural Changes

The biggest change in The FAM involves the structure of the organization’s main purpose.

Basically, The FAM is going to sharpen our focus on the three key aspects of involvement for our members.  These areas have always been the main ingredients of what made up The FAM. We’re just going to list them out in a more clear cut fashion.

The new 3-pillars of The FAM’s structure:

1. FAM Spirit - the internal programs, fun and membership of The FAM
2. Campus Traditions & Activities – the emphasis we are placing on helping our members get more involved on campus
3. Life Beyond College – the activities and programs designed to help our FAM members prepare for life once they graduate

More about these three in a minute.

Membership

Most of our membership criteria is staying the same. The FAM is still open and FREE to all full time undergraduate (13 or more hours) and graduate (9 or more hours) students at UTC.

Students still have to maintain a 2.5 GPA.

But the main membership change involves participation requirements. To maintain membership in The FAM, students must participate in the following minimum number of activities each semester as described below and as reflected on their FAM membership card.

• Attend one FAM social each semester
• Attend one Spirit Team meeting each semester
• Participate in 5 campus activities/traditions each semester
• Attend one Life Beyond College event each semester

Upon registration, you will also be given a FAM Spirit team and a Life Beyond College team.

FAM Member Card

Each member of The FAM will be issued a membership card (we’ve always done this). The card is used for identification, to gain access to FAM events/activities and to take advantage of our FAM Discount Providers.

But now The FAM membership card will also be used to track your participation through a stamp log involving the three pillars of our structure. (see image at right)

Your FAM card folds out to reveal your participation log inside. Each time you participate in a FAM Spirit, Campus Tradition or Life Beyond College activity, you can get your card stamped by one of our UTC Student Alumni Council members.  And here’s the cool part…the more stamps you earn, the more cool stuff you get.

Earn More, Get More

The more stamps you earn through participation in activities in our 3-pillar system, the more cool swag you get, including:

• Requirements Needed to Get a FAM Lanyard
  • Attend 3 FAM events (FAM socials or spirit meetings)
• Requirements Needed to Get a FAM T-shirt
  • Six stamps on card
  • Of the six, minimum of 4 FAM events and 2 campus traditions/activities
• Requirements  Needed to Get a FAM Water Bottle
  • 15 stamps on FAM card
  • In total, minimum of 7 FAM Spirit events, 1 Life Beyond College event and 7 campus traditions/activities
• Requirements Needed to Get a FAM Portfolio
  • 25 stamps on FAM card
  • In total, minimum of 9 FAM Spirit events, 2 Life Beyond College events and 14 campus traditions/activities

These can be earned throughout the entire year so you will have plenty of opportunities to participate.

FAM Spirit

FAM Spirit is the internal aspect of The FAM.  Upon registration, each member of The FAM will be assigned a FAM Spirit team. Throughout the year, these teams will meet and get to know one another AND they will also compete against the other spirit teams in fun competitions. The team with the greatest participation (and FAM points) at the end of the year will be rewarded with a huge pizza party (and maybe some other cool gifts).

FAM Spirit also includes fun internal programs, such as our new weekly FAM socials. The FAM socials are informal gatherings every Wednesday from 10am – 2pm at the Patten House (corner of Oak  and Palmetto).  Sometimes we’ll have board games for people to play. Sometimes we’ll host a cornhole tournament. And sometimes we’ll have special FREE food available.  (Just a reminder that you’re required to attend at least one social each semester) But they are intended to be social gatherings and open for you to get to know other FAM members.

There’ll be plenty of other fun FAM Spirit activities as well, coordinated by our FAM Spirit committee (let us know if you’d like to serve on it – email us at letusknow@utc.edu).

Campus Traditions (Tradition Preservers)

Two of the biggest roles The FAM plays are to encourage our members to be active on campus and to uphold campus traditions. The new FAM model will reward our members each time they participate in a certified campus activity (certified = approved and recognized activity by our Tradition Preservers committee).  There is a special section on your FAM membership card to get stamps for participating in campus activities. And we don’t intend that all of these have to be activities facilitated by The FAM.

To help you keep track of your participation AND to give you a way to show off your experiences throughout the year, each FAM member will be given a Scrappy Journal. Your Scrappy Journal will allow you to post photos of yourself participating in campus traditions. It’s an ongoing scrapbook of your year. If you bring in your journal with a new photo of you participating in a campus tradition/event, we’ll stamp your card.

Stay tuned to learn more about the Scrappy Journal.

Life Beyond College

As indicated by the name of the organization, one day you will be an alumnus/a of UTC, and so The FAM (Future Alumni Members) also wants to be sure we offer you plenty of opportunities to prepare for life beyond college.  Every FAM member upon registration will be assigned a LBC team as related to your major and/or career interest. Each semester, The FAM & Student Alumni Council will offer opportunities for your LBC team to get together to learn more about your career. Sometimes we’ll host a session with an alum who can give you the ins and outs of how to succeed in their field.  We will also offer opportunities for you to learn the basic aspects of life beyond college as well (sessions on interview skills, personal finance, buying/selling your home, marital/family preparation etc.). And of course we’ll relay how to take advantage of the benefits and services offered by the UTC Office of Alumni Affairs and the University of Tennessee Alumni Association (UTAA).

We will also recognize many LBC related activities offered by other campus departments (such as the Career and Placement Office).

Join (rejoin) the new and improved FAM!

We have spent a lot of time brainstorming and planning out these changes, which we hope will both give you a better overall FAM experience but more  importantly a better overall campus experience. So be sure to join (or rejoin) The FAM and get started on making the most of your time at UTC.

Also be sure to register for The FAM’s organizational page on the new UTC Collegiate Link system (click here). We will be using this to communicate with you about our events, news and other information.

Students Today, MOCS FOREVER!