ICAR'S First Annual Alumni Symposium Hosts Two-Day Conference for 100 Graduates

ICAR celebrated its 25th year with an Alumni Symposium gathering over 100 alumni, current students, faculty and staff for two days of panel presentations, discussion and networking. 12 panels brought alumni practice and experience into the spotlight on topics such as teaching, civic planning, public policy, career development, water conflict and using collaborative technologies. Current ICAR faculty moderated each panel made up of two to four alumni or current students sharing expertise and sparking discussion.

This year’s symposium was the first time ICAR had hosted such an event, brining together alumni of all the different degree programs. After 25 years of excellence in teaching, the ICAR alumni community has grown to over 500 alumni, including graduates from the Master’s, Doctoral, Undergraduate, and Graduate Certificate Programs. Video of the different panels will be edited and put on the ICAR Community forum in the coming months so alumni who were not able to attend the symposium can hear what was said.

The Security and Intelligence panel exemplified the longevity of ICAR’s programs. Panelist, Suzanne Devlin was a member of ICAR’s first cohort, graduating in 1985. Lynn Kunkle was a Master’s student in the mid-90’s and Tim Adgent represented the 2007 graduating class. These panelists were able to touch on issues and concerns that correspond with the needs of all alumni, from the first to graduate to the most recent.

CAR’s activities and dedication to the local community came out in the Civic and Community Planning panels and the DC Issues panels with presenters Juliana Birkhoff , Bill Potapchuk, and Gary Willoughby sharing their experiences of working on local community and economic development issues ranging from transportation policy to education reform.

The first day of the symposium coincided with ICAR’ annual Welcome Dinner. A record crowd of over 130 The first day of the symposium coincided with ICAR’s annual Welcome Dinner. A record crowd of over 130 new and returning students, faculty, alumni, staff and friends of ICAR packed Hazel Hall’s atrium for an evening of scholarship presentations, welcome addresses, and networking.

Dr. Jamie Price, Director of the Shrive Center housed at ICAR was the key note speaker. Two new scholarships were inaugurated this year, the Faculty Scholarship represents the commitment of ICAR faculty to continued fund raising to support ICAR students. The Alumni Scholarship stemmed from the many contributions made by ICAR alumni to the student scholarship fund. Both scholarships were awarded to students with excellent academic records and strong potential for contribution to the ICAR and Alumni communities. Additionally, three ICAR staff members, Erin Ogilvie, Jenny Lock and Deanna Yuille were awarded Achievement