WPAOG Report of Gifts 2017

Dear Friends, Family & FellowGraduates, As your President and CEO of the West Point Association of Graduates (WPAOG), it is my pleasure to say Thank You. Your Margin of Excellence gifts to West Point make a difference every day in the lives of cadets as they prepare for the complex leadership challenges they will face after graduation as officers in the Army and servants of our Nation. Your generosity in 2017 also furthered WPAOG’s ability to serve the Long Gray Line. In March of 2017, we successfully launched the Rockbound Highland Home Program to provide a more hospitable reception to graduates returning to visit West Point. It is with great pride that I report that the program received two Gold Awards from the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education’s (CASE) District II Accolades Awards Program. The awards recognized outstanding work in “Alumni Relations” and “Alumni Relations Events and Affinity Programs.” Further, your gifts to WPAOG will enable us to implement our enhanced Career Services Program. This program will augment the support we provide graduates as they transition into or within the private sector with support of a growing network of advisors, employers, and contacts who value the unique education, skills, and experience of West Point graduates. Coming soon, another new program called Grad Link will use cutting-edge technology to provide a new social and professional networking tool and bring us closer to our aspirational vision: for the Long Gray Line to be the most highly connected alumni body in the world. It has been a privilege and an honor to serve West Point and the Long Gray Line alongside LTG (R) Larry R. Jordan ’68 during his years of outstanding service as the Chairman of WPAOG’s Board of Directors. Please join me now in welcoming LTG (R) Joe DeFrancisco ’65 to this important position. In addition to his remarkable career in the Army, Joe’s dedication to the Academy has been recognized with two awards. In 2014, the West Point Society of DC presented him its highest recognition, the Castle Memorial Award, and in 2013 he received WPAOG’s Distinguished Graduate Award. I look forward to working with you over the course of the coming year and to celebrating WPAOG’s 150th anniversary in 2019. Serving West Point and the Long Gray Line, Todd A. Browne ’85 President & CEO West Point Association of Graduates A Message from the President T 2 West Point Association of Graduates | 2017 Report of Gifts