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Alumni Sites

Forums: General Discussion
Created on: 08/11/12 11:30 AM Views: 1345 Replies: 10
Saturday, August 11, 2012 at 11:30 AM

I have been searching the archives and I'm still not sure about how this works. Is there some help somewhere that shows the best current method for linking sites? I have a multi-year site for the last 4 graduating classes from our school. Now there is a group working on an all-year reunion (17 classes) and I am trying to figure out the best way to do this. If we complete one more multi-year site for the remaining 13 classes, is there a free alumni site that will link the two? I saw discussions about this, but I am not sure if that is finally how alumni sites were created, because other references to alumni sites refer to them as multi-year sites. I am open to suggestions for the easiest and most cost effective way to accomplish this. Thanks.

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Monday, August 13, 2012 at 12:56 PM - Response #1

A site can be either single year or multi-year, but no sites have any special features that connect them to other sites. The only way to connect them is to place links on pages of a site that point to the other site, just the way any page on any site on the internet can link to any other regardless of the site.

If you have two multi-year sites for the same school, the most practical choices are either to place links on each one pointing to the other, or to simply expand the range of years on one site to cover the range for the other and abanadon one of the two sites altogether.


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Monday, August 13, 2012 at 1:25 PM - Response #2

I would run the multi-year class reunion (17 classes) on the multiple year site. It just makes sense.

And yes, LaVerne... we did have a discussion here about linking sites. It should be on the wish list to be looked at sometime after 3.0 is released.


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Monday, August 13, 2012 at 5:49 PM - Response #3

So any idea the time frame on 3.0 being released and the other being looked at. I have a year until this all-year reunion. Of course I would like to start contacting people and collecting data asap. The classes that have set up the last four years aren't sure they want to share their site for fear of it getting too big for anyone to want to visit, so the discussion about linking sites sounded like the answer. Thought I could just have the two and link them if possible. Not sure how that works for the reunion planning etc.

This is the post I saw from Brad Switzer:
Posted Wednesday, October 20, 2010 at 6:23 PM
We're batting around some ideas here regarding alumni sites and are hoping to get some good brainstorming ideas from the Admins.

The current multi year format works very nicely particularly for smaller schools where many classes interact as 1, but it doesn't always work as well as desired for larger schools. So here's an idea:

Whenever 2 or more classes from the same school join Class Creator, the option will pops up allowing each Admin from each single year site to add their site to the Alumni network. Once they elect to add it they can then specify what Classmates from other class years can do on their site, kind of like the current Admin Rights feature. Options would include things like:

* Participate in Live Chat
* Participate in User Forums
* View restricted Classmate Profiles
* Instant Message Classmates from other years
* etc.

To encourage the existence of the alumni site I think we'll just make all alumni sites free. The real question we're stuck on here is who gets to control the content on the alumni site? ...

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Edited 08/13/12 5:52 PM
Monday, August 13, 2012 at 6:02 PM - Response #4

What Brad talked about hasn't been worked on. It was just ideas.


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Monday, August 13, 2012 at 6:40 PM - Response #5

Well, I think the alumni network is a good idea. I understand his questions about control though. I think that is one reason the last 4 classes are reluctant to add any more classes. Another concern is space. We ran out of space for photos when we expanded our site to 4 years and had to upgrade. Is there limitations as to the number of people that can be added? We had over 400 in our graduating class. I'm sure some of the older classes weren't that big, but 17 classes with hundreds per class starts adding up quick. I was really hoping we could use a website for collecting contact info and reunion planning purposes.

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Edited 08/13/12 6:44 PM
Monday, August 13, 2012 at 7:37 PM - Response #6

Yes, I recall that thread, LaVerne.

Again, I suggest a multi-class site. I have a single year site for my class paid out another 8 years. Yet, when 'guests' (members of other classes) reached the suggested limit (over 25 in one class) determined by a survey of my classmates, I knew it was time for something to happen. The class with over 25 members as guests on my class site were not interested in a web site. With that, I started an alumni site for my school.

That is where I would run a multi class reunion - on an alumni site. I would run only a multi class reunion on a multi class site. This will give the planners complete reports in one place. I would not want anything less.

That's my two cents.


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Monday, August 13, 2012 at 7:54 PM - Response #7

I have a multi-year site with 4 years...just trying to figure out how to connect 13 more without adding them to that site. The committee members who have paid for the multi-year site for several years out do not really want to add to that site. If I add a new multi-year site with all the years, then duplicating 4 years would be too confusing for those classmates that would be located on two different sites. That is why I was hoping to have the two multi-year sites and then be able to connect them to access each other somehow. I guess that is not an option at this time, so I'm not sure how to resolve this without duplicating the original 4 classes or convincing them to add the others to their site.

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Edited 08/13/12 7:55 PM
Monday, August 13, 2012 at 9:45 PM - Response #8

Hi LaVerne,

I believe the answer is ... you will not be able to connect them. I understand what you want but I've duplicated my class list on the alumni site... and now have two other classes listed that have recently started their own site. I continue to note that the alumni site is "where alumni reconnect with teachers and across the years." Think of it that way... concentrate on that and move forward. That is what I did.

My reply to your last sentence is... duplicate the original 4 classes on an alumni site... be it all school years or ONLY the 17 years for the reunion.


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Monday, August 13, 2012 at 9:57 PM - Response #9

Thank you for your patience with me. So when you duplicate the lists on the two sites, if the classmates join one site, do you add the info to the other, or how do you keep them both current. I have enough trouble getting them to "join" one site, I'm not sure I would ever get them to do both. That is what I thought would be most troublesome about duplicating the info. Then making sure everything regarding the reunion is on the one site for planning purposes. Just seems like a lot of room for someone to fall in the cracks. Maybe I'm too pessimistic.

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Monday, August 13, 2012 at 10:50 PM - Response #10

LaVerne,
I uploaded ONLY the names and class years. I could have added email addresses but felt the decision to join the alumni site and receive emails is not my choice but my classmates' choice. I do not see that things are duplicated between the sites EXCEPT for In Memory information and a recent story about our band director and his wife's 60th anniversary.

Regarding reunion info... on the other site, add an announcement with a countdown clock - if you wish. Be sure to include a LINK to the multi class site to REGISTER. Wait... be sure to (IN FEW WORDS) note they must register on the site to register for the reunion. (Be sure not to write as if it is a bother. There is no need to apologize as this is how it needs to be done.) Cool

I admit, I have classmates who have not yet joined the alumni site that I announced a year ago this month. If I had a multi class reunion happening, I bet they'd be on the alumni site! Smile

Think POSITIVE. It can and will work. Smile


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