President Ono and Proudly Cincinnati Co-Chair Participate in Hot Yoga Class

If you don't live in Cincinnati, you may not have heard about the most recent partnership that is bringing the university closer to the 100,000 campaign donor goal. President Ono and Proudly Cincinnati campaign co-chair, Buck Niehoff will celebrate men’s health month by participating in a hot yoga class at Yoga Alive in Clifton on Wednesday, June 5.

As part of President Ono’s drive to reach 100,000 donors by the end of the Proudly Cincinnati campaign, Yoga Alive will donate $5 on behalf of each person who participates in the free June 5 class. The class is open to alumni, faculty and staff, but the space is limited to 40 people. Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis.

If you will not be in Cincinnati for the free yoga class, you can still get involved in the 100,000 donor effort by supporting the Proudly Cincinnati campaign. If you've already donated, share the information with your friends and encourage them to give to the campaign!

UC Alumni Give Career Advice to New Graduates

The past weekend the University of Cincinnati awarded more than 6,000 degrees. On the UC Alumni Association's Linkedin group and Facebook page, we recently asked our alumni to offer up their best advice for new college grads.

Below is a sampling of career advice from our alums. If you have any tidbits of your own you'd like to share, please feel free to comment below, or join in on the actual discussion on Linkedin!

"My career advice is to remind yourselves daily that learning is what life and work is all about. Continue to foster that interest and curiosity in the work world each day like you did through college. You are not expected to know or pretend to know everything, only continue to be interested and learn so that you can apply what you learn in the best manner possible. All of us live life and work each day. How we approach the way we live can be by design or by default (allowing life to happen to you). I recommend choosing to live it by design rather than default." - Janine Melink-Hueber

"Make your first priority finding a great company even though you may not start out with the perfect job. Then do fabulous work and spend time networking so you'll be in line for future promotions toward that dream job." - Debbie Kibler Speer

"Stand tall, be proud, your degree means as much and more than degrees from the'Elite' schools...you are ELITE!" - Robert Buchholz

"Create long term goals for yourself before beginning your job search. Write them down, and look for opportunities that will only assist you in achieving those goals! Good luck Bearcats!" - Joe Cafferty

"Your first job may not be your ideal job but you have to start somewhere!" - Kathy Imhoff-Witt

What career advice do you have for new graduates? Share your suggestions by commenting below!

First Generation Student Reflects on Time at UC

Obye Davis served as a Student Orientation Leader at UC,
which is one of his favorite memories. 

As one of the first students from the Gen-1 House, Obye Davis, prepares to graduate, he recently shared how his UC experience transformed his life. From his coursework within the McMicken College of Arts and Sciences and his communication major, to his multiple internships and extracurricular activities, Davis credits his education for enabling him to achieve his goals.

Attending a university that embraces diversity helped Davis step outside of his comfort zone. In 2010, Davis became a Student Orientation leader for the University - an experience that changed his life.

“For the first time, I was able to talk to people not like myself, and I was forced to flourish in areas different than what I was used to,” Davis explained. “UC furnished the opportunity to step outside of my comfort zone, and it changed my life.”

Davis became a leader in the ADVANCE program, which aids African American students in making the transition from college to professional careers. He also became active in the Student Alumni Council, Student Development Council, Student Government, Collegiate 100 Honorary, NAACP, and the United Black Student Association (USBA). Davis was also a founding member of GQ, which is a group dedicated to increasing the graduation rate of black males at UC.

Davis gained valuable experience working for
the mayor of Cincinnati's office.

When reflecting about his time at UC, Davis recognizes many moments with these student activities as some as his favorite. “There’s a tie for my favorite UC memory. It’s between my entire summer spent being a Student Orientation Leader, and being initiated into the Collegiate 100 Honorary,” Davis said. “My experience as a freshman in the Gen-1 house will also be a memory I always cherish.”

Davis worked multiple jobs while attending the university to help pay for school, and received  valuable professional experience from multiple internships. One of his most treasured experiences was the opportunity to work in the mayor’s office of the City of Cincinnati.

“I had the opportunity to plan and execute the Mayor’s 8th Annual Youth Jobs and Opportunities Fair,” Davis said, “I organized press conferences and created press kits. I gained lots of experience and even received a job offer!”

As Davis prepares for the next chapter of his life, he credits his involvement at UC for helping him understand others. “Because of my involvement, I gained an understanding the different of the shoes others walk in. I think the one thing I stress to others is to have the ability to step in the shoes of others and understand their point of view,” Davis explained. “I am Proudly Cincinnati because I realize the struggles and triumphs of others.”

While Davis does not have any concrete plans after graduation, he’s still weighing his options. A year ago he was uncertain about his job prospects, but now has various offers from a few different companies.

Congratulate Davis and all of the other seniors with a comment on the blog below!

Former Bearcat Brings Gourmet Grilled Cheese to Cincinnati

Emily Frank, owner of C'est Cheese

 In the past few years, food trucks have popped up in cities across the U.S., including Cincinnati.  An alumna from UC recently started her own food truck – one specializing in gourmet grilled cheese called C’est Cheese (pronounced say cheese).

After working in the corporate industry in Chicago, Emily decided to leave the Windy City and start her own business in 2011 in the Queen City. “I loved the idea of a food truck because it can reach an entire city versus a single brick and mortar location,” Emily explained. “This is how C’est Cheese was born.”

As a student at UC, Emily was involved with a sorority and student alumni council. She credits these groups for teaching her how to be a leader and providing her with skills to manage a budget.

Emily’s undergraduate experience isn’t her only connection to UC. Many of her biggest customers are UC grads, eating up the most popular menu item, the bee sting – a sweet and spicy combination of mozzarella, pepperoni, basil-infused honey, and chili flake butter.

Emily in the C'est Cheese bus

“I’m proud to be a part of such a diverse and accomplished university.  I love that we are famous for our top-notch schools such as DAAP & CCM and our athletics,” Emily said. “Going to UC is a family affair for us. I’m proud of my grandfather for being in the first class to earn a degree in broadcasting from CCM, and my sister for earning her undergrad and masters in education.  Hopefully, my nephews are future Bearcats!”

C’est Cheese occasionally stops close to UC’s campus, and even parks outside of the UC Alumni Association before all home football games, bringing cheesy goodness to alumni tailgating at the Bearcat Blitz. To find out if C’est Cheese will be in your neighborhood, visit her Facebook and Twitter pages!

Did you start your own business? How did your UC connections help you get started?

Architecture Alum Featured for Bringing UC to D.C.

DAAP alum Todd DeGarmo is recognized by President
Santa Ono for his role in bringing UC to D.C. during the
Proudly Cincinnati campaign.

Following UC's billion-dollar milestone, the March edition of the UC Where You Are Newsletter featured Todd DeGarmo - a DAAP alumnus who has been instrumental in bringing the Proudly Cincinnati campaign to Washington D.C. Since the start of the campaign in 2005, DeGarmo and his colleagues have twice surpassed their regional campaign goals, first moving past $8 million, and then $10 million a short time later.

Other stories in the March edition include a preview of President Ono's #hottestcollegeinAmerica tour, information about UC's new mobile apps, details about President Santa Ono's goal to reach 100,000 donors by June 30, 2013, and a story about an alumnus who is the general manager at The Drake Hotel in Chicago.

If you didn't receive the newsletter via e-mail, check out the full issue online and then update your contact information to ensure you receive the latest version in your inbox every few months.

If you have an idea for the next edition, or know an alum to spotlight, tweet us at @UofCincyAlumni, comment below or send us an e-mail to alumni.association@uc.edu.

Alumni Weekend: Campus is Calling You Back!

Alumni Weekend 2012

Remember being in college and getting Spring Fever? The weather warmed up, outdoor activities took over, the campus looked better — heck, even your fellow students looked better!

It’s that time again! Springtime is calling you back to campus for Alumni Weekend, the UC Alumni Association’s annual gathering for alums and friends of all ages.

With UC’s conversion to semesters this year, Alumni Weekend has moved up one month — Friday through Sunday, April 12-14. It’s a great opportunity to:

• Reconnect with your college …
• Visit with old and new friends …
• Marvel at what they’ve done with campus …
• Enjoy being a Bearcat!

There will be plenty of activities offered through the colleges as well as student and alumni organizations, as well as some all-UC fun. Highlights include:

Friday, April 12

• The MainStreet Stride foot parade through campus at noon — open to everyone in the UC Family

Saturday, April 13

• Campus tours (walking or by bus) throughout the morning
• An all-UC Skyline lunch buffet at 11:30 a.m. at the Myers Alumni Center
• Sigma Sigma Carnival in the evening

Sunday, April 14

• Golden Bearcat Brunch honoring alumni of 50+ years

Get all the details and make plans to come home to UC for Alumni Weekend!

What are you looking forward to the most about Alumni Weekend? Let us know by commenting below!

Alumni Weekend is presented by your UC Alumni Association in cooperation with GEICO, Skyline and Graeter’s.

National #HottestCollegeinAmerica Storyteller: Ono? Oh, yes!

President Ono's tour is largely about
hearing what's on the minds of alumni.

 The UC success story deserves to be energetically told all across the country — so that’s exactly what new President Santa Ono is doing during the first half of 2013.

Ono embarked on his #HottestCollegeinAmerica Tour in Dayton in January (140 in attendance) before visiting Phoenix in February (another 45). Presented and coordinated by the UC Alumni Association, the tour is named for Ono’s Twitter hashtag that promotes UC in the social media realm. The caravan is unfolding against the backdrop of continual good news, including:

• Rising institutional rankings (UC is up a dramatic 17 spots in the last two years in U.S. News & World Report);
• Steady elevation in academics (each incoming freshman class is more academically prepared than the last, with graduation rates on a steady climb);
• Exciting innovations emerging from all corners of the university community;
• Crossing the $1 billion threshold of the historic Proudly Cincinnati campaign.

A combination of presidential presentation, “fireside chat” and candid Q&A, each stop finds Ono making his way around the room with a microphone, answering whatever he’s asked. The audience is mostly alumni from that city, but also current students on co-op assignment, prospective students and their parents, and others who are intrigued by Ono’s story and school.

President Ono fielded questions all over the room.

The #HottestCollegeinAmerica Tour is fundamental to the work of both President Ono and the UC Alumni Association.

“I’m sharing an exciting look at what UC is doing and where we’re going, which people say they appreciate, especially when they’re far away from campus,” Ono said. “Yet maybe more important is my opportunity to tap into what they’re seeing and feeling. Obviously I hear from alumni and students all the time via Twitter and Facebook, but there’s nothing like being together, and then assimilating those viewpoints into how we advance the university.”

The UC Alumni Association feels the same way, especially in terms of getting that many Bearcats in the same room to talk about the huge common thread in their lives.

“When alumni know more about what’s going on and who’s leading the way, they inevitably want to get more involved,” said UC Alumni Association executive director Myron Hughes, BUS ’86.

Ono connected with the alumni, students, and parents 

who came to learn more about the #HottestCollegeinAmerica — 

and he did so with and without red-and-black neckwear.

 (Minutes before this photo was taken, he had gladly 

surrendered his tie when an alum asked where he

 might find one like it.)

“You wouldn’t believe how many alums I meet in my travels who are thrilled at the opportunity to get reconnected. Many of them say, ‘Myron, let me know how I can help.’ There is a genuine need within most alumni to have this important connection — to somehow be part of it. Working with the president, it’s our job to make these opportunities available and to welcome everyone who steps forward.”

The 2013 Tour is likely only the beginning.

“I’d like to keep doing this, visiting different cities every year,” Ono said. “Life isn’t a snapshot. It keeps changing, and we have alumni all over the world who want to help their university keep climbing higher.

“And I like to stay on the move,” he added, smiling.

Upcoming tour dates include: 

April 4
Atlanta, Ga.

May 29
Los Angeles, Calif.

May 30
San Francisco, Calif.

June 6
Cleveland, Ohio

June 27
Tampa, Fla.

June 28
Orlando, Fla.

Click here to learn more about the #HottestCollegeinAmerica Tour — and to register if @PrezOno is coming your way. Have you attended one of the tour stops? Share your experience by commenting below.

Be a part of the Proudly Cincinnati Campaign

On February 20, 2013, the University of Cincinnati  announced that it surpassed the $1 billion goal of its Proudly Cincinnati campaign, the most ambitious fundraising effort in the university's history.

Though the Proudly Cincinnati campaign has surpassed its billion-dollar goal four months ahead of schedule, there’s still more work to do. Proudly Cincinnati has made a major impact on the University of Cincinnati, but the billion dollars is just the beginning of UC’s fundraising ambitions.

In addition to striving after the goals outlined in UC’s strategic plan, President Ono announced a new goal to reach 100,000 donors by the end of the campaign in June 2013.

Read more about the campaign's positive impact and the future of the campaign. Don't forget to be a part of it!

Have you already donated to the campaign? Share why you are Proudly Cincinnati below.

Stay Connected to UC from Your Smart Phone

The world of technology is advancing, and UC is following suit with the development of a UC Alumni mobile application that keeps you connected, no matter where you are geographically. The app, which is available for free download from iTunes and Google Play, boasts a number of features to keep UC right at your fingertips – literally.

The UC Alumni mobile app launched in late February in conjunction with the UC mobile app and a new on-campus mobile apps incubator. The mobile app incubator provides a space for students, faculty and staff, and alumni to collaborate and build mobile apps together.

Features

Phase one of the UC Alumni mobile app includes the following features:

• Directory– Search and connect with other UC alumni
• News – Get access to current happenings at UC
• Events –  Attend networking events across the country
• Social – Connect with alumni on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and more
• Give – Donate, volunteer, be a mentor, and more! 
• My Info – Update your contact information
• Network – Connect with UC alumni where you are 
• Perks - All UC alumni receive these FREE benefits and discounts 

More to come…

At UC, we’re always striving to improve. And that’s why we are already taking steps to make the UC Alumni app even more beneficial for you. Our plans include adding engagement features like a geo-location section that allows you to find and connect with other UC alums, better integration with social networking sites like LinkedIn, a jobs directory, and more.

If you are interested in providing feedback about the application, please email us at proudlycincinnati@uc.edu. To learn more, visit the mobile app section of the alumni website.

Please consider making a donation to support the UC App Lab on Main today.

UC Love Stories: Justin and Kim

The Bearcat even showed up to Justin and Kim's wedding!

When Justin Post met his wife, Kim, their Bearcat pride instantly bonded them together. Kim was a student at DAAP, and Justin was a recent grad from UC with a degree in political science. After dating for a few years, Justin surprised Kim with an engagement the night before her graduation.

“On the last night of DAAPworks in the spring of 2011, Kim was guiding me – along with all of her family – through the various senior projects and showcases in the DAAP building. Little did she know, at the time, that I had an engagement ring in my pocket, and I was set to drop to one knee once we were finished,” Justin explained. “After what seemed like forever, the tour concluded, and Kim and I journeyed downtown where I popped the question on Fountain Square. Celebrating our engagement and her graduation all at once the next day is something we’ll always treasure. The look on her family and friends’ faces as she showed off her ring at Fifth-Third Arena will always be etched in my mind.”

Justin and Kim shared their love for UC with their wedding guests by hosting a UC-themed wedding. In addition to red and black wedding colors, Kim surprised Justin by hiring the Bearcat mascot to attend their wedding!

The couple continues to show their love for the Bearcats by visiting campus on a monthly (sometimes weekly) basis. These devoted Bearcats are both football and basketball season ticket holders. Justin and Kim even travel to various football and basketball games to root for the Bearcats in other cities. “There are few better feelings than joining in with dozens of other Bearcat fans as you cheer “Down the Drive” in a city outside of Cincinnati,” Justin said. 

Justin and Kim reside in Cincinnati and Justin works for Map Your Show, a software company on the eastside of Cincinnati, and Kim is a designer for Powerhouse Factories in Newport, Kentucky. 

Do you have a Bearcat inspired love story? Tell us your story below. Do you want to share your love for UC? Send a Bearcat Valentine to your loved ones, and show your love for UC here.