The story of ICUnity goes back to 2002. At the time, Bill Durant ’86 was a regular participant in IC’s professional symposia, which were sponsored by the Office of Career Services and other departments supporting the needs of students of color, including the Office of Multicultural Affairs.

These events brought accomplished alumni of color back to IC’s campus to speak to students about their careers and to offer them professional advice. While he enjoyed connecting with students and other alumni, Durant realized that not everyone could make it back to campus to participate, and he wanted to come up with a solution.

“I thought it would be a good idea to have some events to bring together students and alumni outside of campus, mostly in New York City because that’s where a lot of alumni lived at the time,” he says.

The first event was a student–alumni mixer at Ernst & Young in Manhattan on August 8, 2003, attended by about 10 students and seven alumni. The event was made possible by Holly Gallet ’88, an alumna who worked there at the time. There were two additional networking events at Dow Jones and Company, where Durant previously worked in sales and marketing.

The events were promoted through a Yahoo newsgroup where students, alumni, faculty, and staff interested in ALANA issues could share their thoughts, ideas, and solutions. In 2009 the group moved to Facebook, and then in 2011 the group became formally supported by the Offices of Alumni Relations and Multicultural Affairs, which began providing financial assistance for some of its events. Since then, ICUnity has sponsored well-attended alumni happy hours, student–alumni mixers, picnics, and a meeting between alumni of color and President Rochon.

“At a time when alumni and students are openly talking about race and gender equality on campus, ICUnity serves as a vehicle for open communication,” says Tanya Hutchins ’89. “The more we communicate with students, faculty, and staff, the more we, as alumni, can help to improve conditions.”

Today the Facebook group has 360 members and counting. ICUnity held a multicultural social event during Alumni Weekend on campus last fall, providing an opportunity for 70 students and 57 alumni to meet and share ideas. In addition to Durant, other key event participants included Dr. Roger Richardson, interim chief diversity officer; Nancy Law, director of alumni engagement; and Reginald Allen ’81, member of the Alumni Association Board of Directors and chair of its Committee for Diversity and Inclusion. More ICUnity events are planned for this summer. The scope of the group has expanded, too.

“Today, ICUnity’s focus is more than careers and networking,” Durant says. “It’s now about increasing engagement between alumni, students, and the college, and improving the quality of life for students on campus.”

Durant says that, especially for students of color at Ithaca, uncomfortable experiences such as recent ones reported in the news may make them feel like the campus is not their home, so ICUnity’s current mission is to offer them support through the alumni network.

“It’s a shame when incidents occur on campus, like when students are called disrespectful names or when an organization puts on an event that is offensive to a group of students,” he says. “Students may start to think, ‘This isn’t the place for me.’ But alumni can tell them, ‘I graduated from Ithaca College. There were challenges for us, but we learned to manage them, to call for change, and to understand that they were balanced by many more positive experiences and opportunities.’”

Durant says he’d like to see ICUnity become a major alumni group that can be called upon to facilitate communication between administration and the students. He’d like to help recruit students, help them as they go through their journey on campus, and then support them when they become alumni.

“We want to help the college graduate as many alumni of color as possible,” he says. “We also want them to benefit from all that Ithaca College has to offer as they graduate into the world of opportunity that is waiting for them.”

ICUnity embraces diversity of all forms and welcomes members of all backgrounds and sexual orientations. Go to the ICUnity site on Facebook to join or visit the ICUnity page on the alumni website for more information. Anyone interested in getting involved with ICUnity as a volunteer can contact Nancy Law at nlaw@ithaca.edu.