Two years ago, when Venkat Reddy received a 4,470-page directory of graduates of his alma mater, Pennsylvania State University, he wondered why the school he heads had no alumni group.

Reddy, dean of the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs College of Business, learned the school didn’t know how many alumni it had, let alone how to reach them and ask them to give money, mentor students or attend an event.

Two years later, the College of Business has a new association that boosters hope will give its 6,000 alumni a chance to network, connect with faculty and students — and donate to the school.

The lack of an alumni group at the college was a glaring issue for Reddy and others, who are trying to lift the school’s profile through the association, a newly renovated classroom building — Dwire Hall — and new programs like a bachelor’s degree in innovation.

Those efforts began with the collapse of a ceiling in the aging Dwire Hall, which has been extensively renovated and expanded and will reopen Thursday with a reception that will include, of course, networking.

The College of Business Alumni still doesn’t rival Pennsylvania State University’s network of nearly 160,000 (of which Reddy is a member).

Still, Reddy has found that more than half of the UCCS college’s 6,000 alumni still live in the Colorado Springs area.

“We brought this group together not just to help the college, but to help each other,” Reddy said.

“If we can get 10 percent of our alumni involved in this effort, we can make a difference for the college, the community and even at the state level.”

For help forming an alumni group, Reddy turned to Steve Bach, a 1968 College of Business graduate and owner of Bach Real Estate Partners LLC; and Brenda Smith, a 1978 graduate who heads the local office of accounting firm BKD LLP.

Both initially were skeptical, having worked on other projects with the school that withered after a few years and frequent dean changes.

“The college hasn’t sustained a close dialogue with the business community or alumni over time,” Bach said. “If this group had been in place when I graduated, I would have met people in the local business community and had a shot at getting a job here.”

Bach instead was hired by Procter & Gamble Co. in Cincinnati as a product manager and didn’t return to the Springs until several years later as a marketing executive with Current Inc., an opening he heard about from one of his former UCCS professors.

Bach, Reddy and Smith kicked off their efforts with a reception at El Pomar Foundation’s Penrose House in October that attracted 28 alumni who would form the core of the alumni group. They formed five teams to work on networking, mentoring, funding, faculty recognition and community outreach, and held a second reception in April that attracted 120 alumni.

“Something magical happened at that reception — you had people who were friends for 10 to 15 years who didn’t know they were alumni of the same school,” Reddy said.

“Everyone spoke with great passion about getting together and moving this effort forward.”

The receptions were designed in part to foster networking and have already begun to pay dividends.

Jane Young of Pinnacle Financial Concepts Inc., a financial planning firm, said she already has gotten a couple of clients based on referrals from other alums.

“I was on an alumni board formed 10 years ago, but we never met,” said Young, who earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from UCCS and was president of the student body in the early 1980s.

“We are creating an organization that will last because so many are involved.”

The group has invited alumni to attend the reopening of Dwire Hall, which again houses the College of Business after completion of a 15-month, $10 million renovation and expansion.

The college hopes to raise at least $500,000 from alumni and others to help pay the remaining costs of the Dwire project.

Alumni have more reason to donate now that state officials have agreed to extend the Colorado Springs enterprise zone to include UCCS. That means donations to the project or others on the campus are eligible for a 25 percent state tax credit.

The reopening event and receptions, including another planned for October to honor distinguished faculty, are only one way the group is hoping to connect with alumni. The group also is publishing a newsletter, calling alumni and seeking mentors for students.

The College of Business has about 1,500 students, including 450 who take classes as part of the school’s online master’s of business administration program.

“What an incredible opportunity we have to connect people in the community with the university and with each other,” Smith said. “Just think of the impact we could have on the community if we (alumni) got together to make something happen in conjunction with the university.”

CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0234 or wayneh@gazette.com

DETAILS

Alumni of the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs College of Business can connect with the school in several ways, including sending contact information, attending the reopening of Dwire Hall or making a donation:

- Contact Dean Venkat Reddy:

College of Business 1420 Austin Bluffs Parkway University of Colorado at Colorado Springs Colorado Springs 80918 Phone: 262-3113 E-mail: vreddy@uccs.edu Web site: http://business.uccs.edu

- Make a donation:

Contributions of at least $500 are eligible for a state tax credit and should be payable to “El Paso County Enterprise Zone.” Designate UCCS-Dwire Hall in the lower left corner of check on the memo line. Mail the check to University of Colorado Foundation, P.O. Box 7150, Colorado Springs 80933.

For contributions of less than $500, make checks payable to “CU Foundation.” Designate UCCS-Dwire Hall in the lower left corner of check on the memo line. Mail the check to the foundation at the above address.

Donors also may give online at http://www.cufund.org/giveonline/cart.php.