Harvard Club of Saint Louis - Membership Drive 2016-17

Welcome to the Harvard Club of Saint Louis! We are actively recruiting new members, and soliciting renewal from current members. Please join us at an upcoming Club event - we look forward to seeing you there!

The Harvard Club of Saint Louis is your connection to the St. Louis Harvard community. On behalf of the Club’s officers and board of directors, I would like to thank everyone for their participation this past year. Alumni can become involved with the Club in many ways, and I encourage you to join us or continue your participation in the coming year.  The Club is dedicated to promoting Harvard through service, scholarship, and social events.
 

The Club supports both Harvard and the St. Louis community. A portion of member dues goes toward the Club’s annual contribution to scholarship funds provided by the College for local students attending Harvard. Some of our additional service highlights include:
 

  • Applicant interviewing:  Our local alumni interview applicants to Harvard College in the region extending from Quincy, Illinois to Columbia, Missouri. These interviews and reports provide crucial information to the admissions committee as it makes admissions decisions. This is perhaps the most important function of the club, and we are always in need of additional interviewers; last year our local alumni interviewed 241 applicants to Harvard College. Alumni from the College or any of Harvard's graduate or professional programs are qualified to interview. This is actually fun work! If you would like to participate, please let us know, and we would be happy to provide training.
  • Summer Community Service Fellowship:  Contributions from our members provide a stipend for a Harvard student who wishes to engage in community service or a service project in our area, but might not otherwise be able to do so due to financial constraints. In 2015, the Fellowship was awarded to Nadia Armouti, AB '15, who designed and taught a multicultural art history course to middle school students in fall 2015 at South City Prep in St. Louis.
  • Early College Awareness: Every spring the HCSL hosts an event to help middle school students and their families prepare for their high school careers with an eye toward college.
  • The Harvard Club of Saint Louis Community Service Award:  Each year the club recognizes an individual’s contributions to the fabric of the St. Louis region. This year, Jason Purnell, AB ‘99 received the award for his service as director of For the Sake of All, a public health initiative in St. Louis funded by the Missouri Foundation for Health. Charli Cooksey received the award in 2015 for her service as Executive Director and Co-founder of inspireSTL.

The Club also serves an important social function for our members. We schedule a number of events throughout the year – including many “All Ivy” events planned in coordination with our sister clubs. Last year’s events included a cheese-making demonstration and tasting at Marcoot Creamery, a talk on climate change by Peter Raven at the Missouri Botanical Garden, a curator-led tour of the Kota exhibition at The Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts, several Harvard Business School entrepreneurship events, and happy-hour gatherings for recent alumni. Be sure to put these annual favorites on your schedule:
 

  • The Game: We get together with the Yale club every November to watch some football in a rivalry dating back to 1875. Will Harvard’s winning streak stretch to a decade this fall? Join us to cheer on the team! This year, the Yale Club will host the Game viewing at Schneithorst’s Restaurant on Saturday, November 19; doors open at 11 a.m. and game time is 11:30 a.m.
  • The Holiday Party: Harvey and Judy Harris host this popular event in their beautiful home every winter. This year’s party will be Wednesday, December 21.
  • Asian Lunar New Year: This is probably our most kid-friendly event with good food and traditional dancers. Usually a weekend brunch in February.
  • The Annual Dinner: Every June the Club gathers for a formal dinner to officially elect the officers and board for the following year. We also present the Community Service Award and have a dinner speaker. Recent speakers have included Bill DeWitt, Dave Peacock, and Eric Greitens.

The Harvard Club of Saint Louis is an all-volunteer alumni organization, and member dues represent our only source of income – we receive no financial assistance from the University.  Since we are a registered tax-exempt, non-profit organization, your dues are tax-deductible.  Many of our events are free, and others are priced well below cost.  We also offer a discounted rate to recent graduates.  There are two ways to join or renew your membership:
 

1) Click on the “Membership” tab above.  The system will ask you to sign in using your HarvardKey user name and password, and then you will be able to complete the transaction and pay by credit card.  If you have trouble logging on, please call the HAA help desk at (800) 823-2478 or (617) 496-0559 and they will be able to assist you.
 

2) Or, if you prefer, click here to access our paper membership form: simply fill out and print the form, and mail to the club along with your check.
 

Either way, you’ll be added to our list of current members, and we will be sure to notify you of future events and activities.  Please join by OCTOBER 15, so you don’t miss any of this year's activities.
 

Thank you for your support of the Harvard Club of Saint Louis.  We look forward to spending time with you at upcoming club events.