Getting Started

The Alumni for Public Schools Project Manager is here to help you develop your partnership and make it fruitful for both the alumni club and the partner school. Here are some documents to help you get started.

Steps to Developing a Partnership (for College and University Alumni)

1. Assess club interest using an email blast or announcement at a club event, then gather interested volunteers and learn their interests and availability using the online Alumni Survey form. Responses can be emailed directly to the APScontact or committee for your group. Responses can be emailed directly to the APS contact in the alumni club. to set this up.)
   
   
2. Identify a leader or form a committee to manage the partnership
   
   
3. Meet with the APS Project Manager to discuss alumni's interests
   
   
4. The APS Project Manager will contact principals of potential partner schools and arrange meetings with one or more schools
   
   
5. Meet at the potential partner school to develop a Partnership Plan of specific volunteer activities.
   (Check the Resources section or read the Top Ten Partnership Activities for activity suggestions.)
   
   
6. Discuss the Partnership Plan with the committee or whole club and commit to specific dates and activities. Confirm details with the principal.
   
   
7. Enjoy your first project with your partner school!
   
   
8. Report your activities online using the APS Activity Reporting Tool in the Report an Activity section. This helps track your involvement and measure your partnership’s impact.
   
   
9. For helpful guides, refer to the Alumni for Public Schools Brochure for an overview of the APS program and download the Partnership Packet for step-by-step instructions, advice and useful forms to help you develop a partnership.
   
   

Steps to Developing a Partnership (for Faculty and Staff of CPS Schools)

1. Determine projects and activities that a group of alumni volunteers could do at your school. Look at the Top Ten List found in the Tools & Advice section for activity ideas. Think about activities you may already have on your school's calendar, such as a Family Literacy Night or a College Fair, with which volunteers could help.
   
   
2. Contact the APS Project Manager to express your interest in finding an alumni club partner. Think about possible existing connections with your school, such as your alma mater or the colleges and universities that teachers and administrators at your school attended. The Project Manager can help you explore these connections or find another alumni club that will be a good match for your school.
   
   
3. Meet with volunteers from the alumni club. The Project Manager can arrange a meeting between alumni volunteers and the school principal and/or other staff members at the school. This is an opportunity to share your school's strengths, programs and needs. Be creative and specific in the ideas you discuss with volunteers. After this meeting, the Project Manager will write up a Partnership Plan, which will detail specific activities, including dates and the required number of volunteers and students involved.
   
   
4. Designate a contact person for the partnership. This can be the principal, assistant principal, counselor or any other staff person who can commit to communicating with the partner alumni club occasionally and helping coordinate activities with volunteers. The alumni club should also designate a contact person for the partnership.
   
   
5. Enjoy your first activity with your partner alumni club! Check up with your partner club throughout the year and contact the Project Manager with any questions.
   
   
6. For helpful guides, refer to the Alumni for Public Schools Brochure for an overview of the APS program and download the Partnership Packet for step-by-step instructions, advice and useful forms to help you develop a partnership.
   
   

Page updated 26 November 2008