WM GALA Now Choice on ‘my1693′

As of July 11, 2011, users of the William and Mary Alumni Association’s social networking platform, my1693, will be able to choose W&M GALA as an affiliation choice in their menu of College related interests. News of this change will be mailed to all members in the upcoming general mailing for dues renewal and Homecoming scheduling, but users who currently are part of the my1693 community are encouraged to log in and make that change now. If you’re not currently part of the my1693 community, GALA encourages you to join.

GALA has striven for decades to establish ties and cooperative relationships with the Alumni Association, and this is a major step forward in these efforts. Special thanks go to Karen Cottrell, Executive Vice President of the Alumni Association, and Jeff Trammell, GALA member and rising Rector of the Board of Visitors for making this happen.

Trammell Elected Rector of BOV

Jeff Trammell, longtime GALA member and recipient of the Founders Cup in 2006, has been elected Rector of the Board of Visitors of the College. To read more about Jeff and his incredible accomplishment, click here.

W&M Rated a Top Value

William and Mary has again placed highly on the Kiplinger’s list of best value in public universities. The 2011 list is out, and W&M is number 4, cited for delivering “stellar education at an affordable price” and gained special kudos for consistently being in their top five every year since they first started publishing their rankings in 1998.

W&M’s “It Gets Better” Campaign Launched

As a response to the number of gay-lesbian suicides in the media in the last 8 weeks, and in cooperation with the Center for Student Diversity, Lambda Alliance and others, this affirming video has been launched on YouTube for the greater community.

Campus Pride Releases GLBT Friendliness College Ratings

Campus Pride, Inc., an non-profit organization dedicated to creating safer, more LGBT-Friendly learning environments at colleges and universities, has released their 2010 Campus Pride Climate Index, a ranking of colleges and universities based on their LGBT “Friendliness” factors. Nineteen schools nationwide received the organizations “Five Star” ranking; none were located in Virginia.

The LGBT-Friendly Campus Climate Index is a vital tool for assisting campuses in learning ways to improve their LGBT campus life and ultimately shape the educational experience to be more inclusive, welcoming and respectful of LGBT and Ally people. All campuses participating in the index are acknowledged for their active interest in LGBT issues as well as their LGBT-Friendly efforts to encourage further progress.

Surprising Find at William & Mary

Scholars at the College believe they have proven that the current office of Military/ROTC on campus is actually the oldest building in the United States used for the education of African-American children. According to the story in the Washington Post, William and Mary was instrumental in opening the school in 1760, at the urging of Benjamin Franklin. Read more.

Homecoming 2010 Schedule Now Available

William and Mary GALA’s schedule of events for Homecoming 2010 is now available for download… just click here: Homecoming Flyer. Also, It will be sent in a mailing to all registered members. If you’re not on our mailing list and want to make sure you receive a hard copy of this information, please download the membership form, and mail it according to the instructions on the form itself.