By Arielle Stevenson, University Communications and Marketing
The crowd at Tropicana Field was already on its feet when Tyler Crawford and other USF alumni appeared on the big screen during the seventh-inning stretch.
Crawford, a 2011 USF St. Petersburg graduate and longtime Rays fan, was surrounded by fellow alumni as the group helped to lead “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” with game host and USF alumnus Nate Kurant during USF Day at the Tampa Bay Rays.
“I’m a huge Rays fan,” Crawford said. “At the time I was thinking about how great it was that I could attend a game for my favorite baseball team along with my alma mater, which I am very proud to be involved with.”
He called the moment, “definitely the highlight of my summer.”
Tyler Crawford, front, with fellow USF alumni at the USF Day at the Rays as part of Alumni Academy.
The outing capped off Alumni Academy held August 1-2 at USF St. Petersburg, where alumni leaders from across the country came for a weekend of activities centered on strengthening connections to the university.
Sam Fiore, assistant director of alumni engagement at the USF Alumni Association, said the annual gathering gives leaders who sometimes live hundreds or thousands of miles apart a rare chance to come together.
“This is one of the only opportunities we get to bring together all of our alumni group leaders throughout the country, so it’s a really exciting weekend for us,” Fiore said.
This year also marked the first time Alumni Academy was held on the St. Petersburg campus, a distinction that Fiore said makes the weekend especially meaningful as USF celebrates its 70th anniversary.
“For many of our Alumni volunteer leaders, this was their first time coming to the St. Pete campus,” she said. “It means a lot to us to highlight such an important part of our campus community.”
Crawford, an attorney in New York with a background in labor and public-interest law, is a volunteer leader with the USF Alumni Association’s New York Chapter, where he said about 5,000 USF alumni live.
His trip south was also a return to the campus where he earned his bachelor’s degree in English and history in 2011.
“I was excited to see what kind of changes have been made to USF,” Crawford said.
Saturday’s programming at Lynn Pippenger Hall gave him plenty to take in. Sessions covered fundraising, social media and digital engagement, and building meaningful alumni relationships. Participants also learned about the Veteran Impact Program and visited the development site of the forthcoming Office of Veteran Services building on the St. Petersburg campus.
The Alumni Academy awards dinner allowed leaders to celebrate each other's accomplishments.
The day ended with a networking happy hour and the Group Excellence Awards dinner at The Edge. For Fiore, the awards dinner stood out most.
“It’s a room filled with love and Bull pride,” Fiore said. “With the room cheering and clapping and hyping one another up, you can’t help but feel fired up for all that will be accomplished this year.”
Crawford found some of his own highlights in the conversations between scheduled events.
“I made a lot of great connections, especially to our DC chapter, which is very active,” he said.
Attendees take a break during Alumni Academy at USF St. Petersburg.
Fiore said organizers build Alumni Academy around those kinds of exchanges.
“We hope that our Alumni groups will feel inspired to continue serving their communities, providing experiences to bring alumni and friends of USF closer,” she said.
Sunday offered a more relaxed setting, with brunch at The Hangar before attendees
headed to Tropicana Field for USF Day.
“My takeaway from the weekend is that I am very proud to be a University of South
Florida alumni,” he said. “It’s clear that the university is growing and going in
a good direction.”
He also came away impressed by USF's reach.
“Our alums are doing excellent work throughout the country and leading in their fields,
both in public service and in their professions,” Crawford said.
For someone who has never attended Alumni Academy, Crawford’s pitch is simple.
“The educational programming and workshops were instructive for those who want to
get involved as alumni leaders,” he said, “and the events were uplifting and a blast.”