An alumnus (pl. alumni) according to the American Heritage Dictionary is "a male graduate or former student of a school, college, or university." ^[1] In addition, an alumna (pl. alumnae) is "a female graduate or former student of a school, college, or university." ^[2] Victoria Park was named after Queen Victoria in the 19th century and is both a large park and the name of an Australian rules football stadium in inner-city of Melbourne, Australia, and is located in the suburb of Abbotsford. ... English High School Alumni Athletic Club, usually just Alumni, is a rugby union and former football (soccer) sports club from the Belgrano district of Buenos Aires in Argentina. ... The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (AHD) is a dictionary of American English published by Boston publisher Houghton-Mifflin, the first edition of which appeared in 1969. ...

Origin

The English word "alumnus" comes from the Latin noun "alumnus" meaning "nursling" or "ward" ^[3] and has come to mean, within common English usage, a graduate (or nursling) of a seat of learning. ^[4] "Alumna" is a feminine form of "alumnus" that has entered common English usage.

Usage

As indicated in the American Heritage Dictionary, an alumnus or alumna is either someone who has attended the school (or a "former student of a school") or someone who has graduated from the school.<reLink titlef name="bartleby-alumnus">alumnus. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.</ref>^[2] Furthermore, according to dictionary.reference.com and the United States Department of Education, the term alumnae is used in conjunction with either women's colleges^[5] or a female group of students. The term alumni is used in conjunction with either men's colleges, a male group of Link titlestudents, or a mixed group of students: The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (AHD) is a dictionary of American English published by Boston publisher Houghton-Mifflin, the first edition of which appeared in 1969. ... Reference. ... The Lyndon Baines Johnson Department of Education Building[1]) , ED headquarters in Washington, DC A construction project to repair and update the building facade at the Department of Education Headquarters building in 2002 resulted in the installation of structures at all of the entrances to protect employees and visitors from... In higher education, particularly in the United States, a womens college is a college (that is, a primarily undergraduate, bachelors degree-granting institution) whose students are exclusively women. ... Mens Colleges in higher education are undergraduate, bachelors degree-granting institutions whose students are exclusively men. ...

Traditionally, the masculine plural alumni has been used for groups composed of both sexes and is still widely so used: the alumni of The University of Illinois. Sometimes, to avoid any suggestion of sexism, both terms are used for mixed groups: "the alumni/alumnae of The University of Illinois" or the "alumni and alumnae of The University of Illinois" coeducational institutions usually use alumni for graduates of both sexes. Some may prefer the phrase "alumni and alumnae" or the form "alumnae/i", which is the choice of many women's colleges that have begun to admit men.^[6]

The term is sometimes shortened to alum which stands for "an alumna or alumnus."^[7] Coeducation is the integrated education of men and women. ... In higher education, particularly in the United States, a womens college is a college (that is, a primarily undergraduate, bachelors degree-granting institution) whose students are exclusively women. ...

"Alumni" (a plural form) is often used as a singular form for both genders; for example, "I am an alumni of the university," as opposed to "I am an alumnus/alumna of the university." This usage is erroneous in formal or historic usage. The prevalence of this usage is likely due to a lack of understanding of Latin grammar and the fact that printed documents and university merchandise almost always use the plural form of the word.

Alumni reunions are popular events at many institutions. They are usually organized by alumni associations and are often social occasions for fundraising. // “School reunion” redirects here. ... An alumni association is an association of former students (alumni). ... Fundraising is the process of soliciting and gathering money or other gifts in-kind, by requesting donations from individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies. ...

Related terms

At most public schools, New Zealand schools, and a few universities in the UK, and to a lesser extent in Australia and Canada, the phrases old boy and old girl are traditionally used for former school pupils, and old member (or "alumni" in New Zealand) for former university students. At the Royal Military College of Canada, the phrases former cadet and member of the old brigade are traditionally used as are college numbers. Another example is the term old corps, in reference to alumni from the Virginia Military Institute. An independent school in the United Kingdom is a school relying, for all of its funding, upon private sources, so almost invariably charging school fees. ... An old boy network or society can refer to social and business associations among former pupils of top male-only public schools (independent secondary schools) in the United Kingdom, such as Eton, Harrow, Winchester and Charterhouse, private schools in Canada, and, to a lesser degree, to university students (notably Oxbridge... The Royal Military College of Canada (RMC), is the military academy of the Canadian Forces and is a full degree-granting university. ... The Virginia Military Institute (VMI), located in Lexington, Virginia, is the oldest state military college in the United States. ...

Some will use a specific term clearly linked to the school name, such as Old Etonian, Old Knox Grammarian or Old Silcoatian (alumni of Eton College, Knox Grammar School and Silcoates School), or a more obscure one, such as Old Citizen and Old Gregorian for those of the City of London School and Downside School. The Kings College of Our Lady of Eton beside Windsor, commonly known as Eton College or just Eton, is a public school (privately funded and independent) for boys, founded in 1440 by King Henry VI. It is located in Eton, near Windsor in England, north of Windsor Castle, and... Knox Grammar School is an independent, Uniting Church, day and boarding school for boys, located in Wahroonga, an upper North Shore suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. ... Silcoates School is a public (private) school in Wakefield, England. ... The red-brick City of London School beside the River Thames. ... Downside School is a Roman Catholic Public School in Stratton-on-the-Fosse near Bath, situated next to Downside Abbey. ...

In Scotland, the term former pupil (FP) is also used, especially when referring to sports teams of a school. Some U.S. schools, most notably Texas A&M University, also prefer former student. Texas A&M University redirects here. ...

Footnotes

is the 335th day of the year (336th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also

Look up Alumnus in
Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Alma mater
• Old boy network
• Alumni association