For the Love of Muhlenberg

By Jennifer McKee

Nearly two years ago, I walked across the Commencement stage and proudly received my diploma. I continued to walk down the ramp and returned to my seat. This was it; I reached another major milestone in my life. The last four years had been a life rich with education and filled with fond memories of friends, faculty, and administration. Now it was time to venture beyond the red doors and, at the time of graduation, I did not know where the next phase of my life would begin.

My friends always believed I would end up back at the ’Berg. In my heart I knew some day I would too, but did I know it would come so soon after I said my goodbyes? Definitely not!

In August as the students prepared to return to Muhlenberg for another year of classes, I too prepared to return. This time, it wasn’t to move into a dorm and buy books for another semester of classes; it was to move into my new role at Muhlenberg as the assistant director of alumni relations.

Now, almost two years after I sat on the College Green in my cap and gown, I have come to know Muhlenberg in a different light. As a student I was fortunate to have a wonderful experience filled with knowledgeable professors, enriching and challenging classes, and friendships that will last throughout my life. As a member of the Muhlenberg staff, my wonderful experience is continuing. Those to whom I once looked for advice are now my colleagues. Every day is filled with conversations with alumni who helped make my experience possible, and now I am responsible for providing the same opportunity to current and future students.

Recently, I took four Cardinal Key students to a student advancement conference in Buffalo, N.Y. Our trip was a learning experience, filled with many laughs, educated conversation and memories that would last a lifetime. During this conference, I witnessed Muhlenberg’s finest. Amongst representatives of other institutions, our students were exemplary in every manner.

While other institutions acted out skits depicting institutional traditions, the four Muhlenberg students stood in front of 200 people and sang the alma mater. I stood in the back of the room, flashing pictures and smiling proudly.
Presently, I am working with Reunion Chairs. Their main job is to build enthusiasm amongst their classmates to return for Reunion Weekend in June. In working with these volunteers

I hear countless stories of their Muhlenberg experience. Chapel requirements, the hoagie man, Haps Benfer, panty raids and freshman dinks are only a fraction of the memories they have shared with me. Their memories bring to me a Muhlenberg I never knew, but a Muhlenberg I have come to know through their anecdotes. I feel enriched by their memories, and hope to
preserve them and pass them on to future generations.

I interact with faculty and staff on a daily basis. I greet them walking down Academic Row, join them for lunch and meet with them to plan campus programming. They are the people that make Muhlenberg tick, who take a genuine interest in the student, and who look to secure Muhlenberg for future generations.

These are the people who make up the Muhlenberg community in which
I work. They make me proud to be a part of Muhlenberg and thankful for
this opportunity to connect the past with the present, and preserve the experience for the future. So when I am so frequently asked why I do what I do, I simply state…“For the love of Muhlenberg.

–Jennifer McKee ’02, Assistant Director of Alumni Relations