United States Military Academy (USMA)

1. Purpose Statement:
As specified in the Constitution for the USMA Class of 1985, the Class exists to perpetuate the association of its members and to support and further the ideals of the United States Military Academy.

2. Strategic Goals of the Association of Graduates (AOG):  

1. INVOLVEMENT – To increase participation by and improve support of graduates, as well as parents and friends of West Point
2. AWARENESS - Promoting national awareness and strong public support for West Point and its graduates
3. FINANCIAL SUPPORT – To provide strong and continuing financial support to West Point and the AOG
4. WINNING – To restore and/or preserve the winning tradition

3. Strategic Goals of the USMA Class of 1985:
In support of our Class purpose and the goals laid out by the Association of Graduates in its Strategic Plan, the goals of the Class for the next five years can be described as follows:

1. COMMUNICATION – To further the main purpose of our Class
   
2. HONORING THE FALLEN – To recognize the accomplishments and impact of each Member
   
3. SUPPORT TO THE LONG GRAY LINE –To provide strong and continuing support to West Point and the Cadets through personal involvement of the Class
   

One of our first challenges stems from the diversity of the Class. A sampling of significant segments appears below:  

• Active duty officers
• Graduates who have completed their active duty commitment and are in the world of business
• Retired officers pursuing second careers
• Reserve Component (US Army Reserve and National Guard) officers
• Widows and families of graduates
• Ex-cadets and associate members

These and other segments contribute to the difficulty in accomplishing our Class purpose as the date of our graduation continues to move further in the past.   

4. Implementation:

a. Communication: This goal focuses on the main purpose of our Class, “…to perpetuate the association of the members begun as Cadets…” as well as the first two strategic goals of the AOG: Involvement and Awareness. While the Class Officers can certainly provide some mechanisms to facilitate this goal, the support of each one of us is needed to accomplish better communications. We have several things we can do/use to increase communications/contact of members of the Class:

• The Class web site: A link to the Class web site can be found on the AOG web site (http://www.aogusma.org/Class/index.htm). While this web site provided some very good support to the distribution of reunion information, it has not been used much to keep the Class informed about each other. The creation of a Class Information Systems Officer (CIO) will help us to improve upon the information presented to the Class. One of the first responsibilities of the CIO will be to create an improved Class web site to foster better information sharing within the Class. This site will be a work in progress and any suggestions members of the Class may have for improvement would be greatly appreciated. GOAL: Update Class web site by 1 January 2006.
• Class e-mail distribution list: With the e-mail addresses maintained by the AOG (currently about 730 valid e-mail addresses), a distribution list has been created to send low volume messages to a greater percentage of the Class. We will use the Class e-mail distribution list to notify members of reunion information and Class business (elections, fundraising, etc.). The AOG also uses the same e-mail database for death notifications to members of the Class. GOAL: Maintain a list of valid e-mail addresses for more than 95% of the Class.
• Listserv: The Class also has a listserv established through the support of WP-ORG. While supporting many Classes of USMA, WP-ORG is a separate organization providing services to many organizations through private contributions. Use of this listserv is great for high-volume messages to those members of the Class desiring membership. Access to the Class listserv can be found at http://www.west-point.org/class/usma1985/. At present, very few members of the Class (approx 300) are signed up for the listserv. Other classes have listserv memberships approaching 50% or more. GOAL: Increase membership with the Class listserv (2006 – 15%, 2007 – 25%, 2008 – 35%, 2009 – 45%, and 2010 – 55%).
• Lost Classmate List: The AOG maintains records on each graduate. While current information may be available about a graduate’s e-mail address, the graduate is considered “Lost” when an invalid mailing address is not on file. We have generally done a great job of finding “lost classmates” as part of the reunion preparation process, but not in the immediate years following a reunion. You can find the most up to date “Lost Classmate” list at http://www.aogusma.org/lost/relost/lostlist.cfm and then selecting 1985. We can keep this list short by updating our own information with AOG and also getting in contact with friends who you see on the list. GOAL: Ensure the “Lost Classmate” list for the Class of 1985 stays below 5% of the graduates.
• Assembly Articles: The Assembly is the main mechanism produced by the AOG to distribute information about West Point and its graduating classes. This publication (either in electronic or print form) can keep you informed about what is going on at West Point and what our Classmates and those Classes with whom we have been close with have been doing. At present, our Class subscription rate to this publication sits at about 230. GOAL: Increase the Class subscription rate to about 400 over the course of the next five years.
• Notable Classmate/Achievement Program: In order to better inform the Class concerning significant accomplishments of its members we would like to initiate a program to acknowledge 2 or 3 classmates per quarter. To do this, we will continue to utilize Regimental and Company representatives for the purpose of nominations. Once selected, the “Notable Classmate / Achievement” will be posted to the Class web site. GOAL: Initiate a Notable Classmate Program by 1 March 2006 with first selections announced 1 June 2006.

b. Honoring the Fallen: As our recent Memorial Service pointed out, many of our classmates have made a very positive impact on our lives.

• Get on track: To honor them, we would like to first complete Memorial Articles for publication in Taps, the AOG publication. The AOG Graduate Guide (http://www.aogusma.org/class/gradguide/index.htm) has a lot of useful information regarding Memorial articles as well as other topics of interest. Typically, memorial articles are written by a classmate, family member, or close friend, usually working in cooperation with the next-of-kin. Some articles are group efforts, involving several people who knew the graduate at different times during his or her life. We challenge the Class to come forward to support this effort with a goal of completing articles for each of our deceased classmates by June 2006. GOAL: Complete past Memorial Articles by 1 June 2006.
• Self-Written Memorial: To help those who follow in this endeavor, we also propose every Member make an effort to complete the “self-written memorial” form available in the Graduate Guide. Doing so will certainly assist both family and friends as they honor you by completing this difficult task. GOAL: 25% of the Class with form on file with the AOG by 2010 (2006 – 5%, 2007 – 10%, 2008 – 15%, 2009 – 20%, and 2010 – 25%).

c. Support to the Long Gray Line: When anyone mentions support to West Point and/or the AOG, the first thing that comes to mind is fundraising. While this is certainly part of support, it is by no means all we can do to help. This goal directly supports the last two strategic goals of the AOG: Financial Support and Winning.

• West Point Societies: West Point Societies provide a means of getting geographically located graduates together for fellowship and to keep them informed about what is happening at the Academy. Societies help the admissions process for prospective Cadets and also support athletic events when teams travel to their local area. Membership in your local society can help us keep informed about each other and to assist the Class should Members in a particular geographic area need some immediate assistance (e.g. natural disaster relief).
• Military Academy Liaison Program (MALO): The purpose of the MALO organization is quite simply to contribute to the continued excellence of the Long Gray Line through the identification of high-quality candidates for admission. MALO representatives identify and assist candidates in the admission process and are assigned to USMA Admissions to coordinate a specific congressional district(s). It is a rewarding job that allows you to give back to our Alma Mater. In addition to the MALO, graduates can participate in this program by serving as a volunteer Field Force Representative for an existing MALO. Further, it is the type of activity that puts you in contact with the best kids from great families.
• Sporting/Club Events: Many Cadets teams/clubs travel throughout the United States to compete on the “Fields of Friendly Strife” and/or to represent West Point. While fan support at the actual athletic or club event is appreciated, clubs often require additional help during travel. Through involvement in local societies, you can help out and contribute to the winning tradition of our Alma Mater.
• Class Leaders’ Conference: Every year (typically in August), the AOG hosts a conference for all Class and Society leaders. This conference aims to keep graduates informed about important issues affecting West Point and to improve the support provided by the AOG. Should you have any concerns and/or recommendations your Class Officers would be interested in what you have to say.
• Class Gift: During the lead-up to our 20-year reunion, a Class Gift campaign was initiated to provide support to the Jefferson Library which is in the process of being constructed. This effort was a huge success so far, but is not yet complete. Many Members made pledges to support the Class Gift and those donations are important in achieving our goal. As the Academy continues to move forward, financial support from alumni becomes more and more important in maintaining “margin of excellence” programs/facilities. We challenge the Class to make our Class Gift efforts more of a continuous effort rather than a peak effort centered on reunions. With modest automatic monthly contributions to our Class Gift account, we can grow our Gift Fund to meet the priority needs of West Point. For those in the corporate world, corporate matching programs can help us achieve even higher goals in the future. GOAL: 35% of the Class making monthly contributions to the Class Gift Account by 2010 (2006 – 15%, 2007 – 20%, 2008 – 25%, 2009 – 30%, and 2010 – 35%). Class Gift Account balance in excess of $500,000 by 2010 (2006 – $50,000, 2007 – $125,000, 2008 – $225,000, 2009 – $350,000, and 2010 – $500,000).

5. Conclusion: In the truest sense, our Class can and will STRIVE FOR EXCELLENCE. Working together, we will reconnect with those who made a positive impact on our lives over the four years we spent together at West Point. By the time of our 25th reunion in 2010, we will take great pride in our accomplishments, contributions, and deeds in support of this great institution and our great nation. Our legacy as a Class will depend upon how well we support each other and the mark we leave on the Long Gray Line that follows. Our work is not done. Like the classes that came before ours, we have an obligation to be involved and to give back in support of the continued success of the future graduates of the Line of Gray.