You’ll find helpful information about the consolidation below.
The foundational reason for this decision is because, like many alumni associations across the country, the WSUAA — first organized in 1913 and operating as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit since 1964 — has been facing a steady decline in its revenue streams over the years. This decline has grown severe in recent years, and includes membership revenue. The loss of revenue affected the WSUAA’s ability to fulfill its mission and prompted the need for a comprehensive look at the organization’s future.
In 2020, a task force was put together to study the WSUAA and its alumni engagement efforts. The task force’s recommendation was to merge with the WSUF, which has operated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit since September 1965. As a follow-up to this recommendation, Wichita State administrators, in partnership with the leadership of the WSUAA and the WSUF, sought the expertise of an outside consulting firm, Grenzebach Glier and Associates (GG+A), to conduct a study of the current state of the WSUAA and to make a recommendation for its operational disposition.
GG+A examined the alternative governance, financial, and structural solutions that would serve to provide greater support for alumni engagement. Similar to the findings of the 2020 task force, GG+A concluded that the consolidation of the WSUAA into the WSUF would offer the most effective network of support for alumni engagement.
In light of the recommendations made by the 2020 task force and GG+A, members of the separate boards of directors of the WSUAA and the WSUF each voted unanimously in March 2022 to proceed with the consolidation of the WSUAA with the WSUF. In April 2022, members of the WSUAA Board of Directors voted to dissolve the 501(c)(3) nonprofit and, further, to consolidate its alumni engagement assets into the WSUF.
The members of both the WSUAA and WSUF boards, as well as WSU top administrators, all have the same goal: to more effectively marshal the resources at hand to better serve Wichita State and the entire Shocker community, especially the university’s alumni supporters. Although the WSUAA as an independent 501(c)(3) organization is being dissolved, its mission is being carried forward with the objective of growing and strengthening alumni relationships and opportunities for alumni engagement.
A task force has been assembled to determine a transition plan, guiding principles and key initiatives for the consolidated organization.
The transition task force includes:
The task force is facilitated by Daniel White, a senior consultant with Allen, Gibbs & Houlik.
We are targeting to have the transition complete by the start of the next fiscal year (July 1, 2022)
The consolidated organization will remain the central point of contact for tens of thousands of alumni around the world. This will provide an opportunity to advance our alumni relationships by reducing overlap and creating more meaningful points of contact.
