2000 – Spring ’21 Class Letter
Greetings, Class of 2000!
Twenty years seems like long enough to wait for a format change to this semi-annual class agent letter. The generosity of our class back to our alma mater has been amazing to watch. Between a great #OneDayRally showing in April 2020 and a tremendous push by our Class Reunion committee to get us fired up, our class managed to have the highest percentage of donorship participation in the Ripon Fund for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020, going back to – wait for it – the Class of 1978! That’s quite the showing for our plucky crew.
We have Summer 2021 in our sights for a joint Class Reunion with the Class of 2001. Alumni Weekend 2021 will be unlike anything we’ve ever seen with two distinct summer weekends of Ripon alumni programming for us. No matter how you’d like to connect, virtually or in person, the Office of Constituent Engagement is developing a variety of activities to continue to follow CDC, Fond du Lac County and College guidelines in both June and August. Full schedules, lodging, and programming details will be posted soon to www.ripon.edu/alumni-weekend.
JUNE 2021
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In honor of our June Alumni Weekend traditions, virtual alumni programming will be held Tuesday, June 22 through Saturday, June 26, and will include: an alumni town hall, R Connections webinars, affinity socials, a summer book club, and special recognition of the 2020 and 2021 Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees.
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The only in-person event, the Doc Weiske ’50 Memorial Golf Scramble, will be held off-campus on Friday, June 25.
AUGUST 2021
A combination of virtual and in-person Alumni Weekend programming will be held the first week of August. We will continue to evaluate the state of COVID-19. If circumstances change at the local and national level and we need to cancel in-person programming, that decision will be made and communicated by July 1, 2021.
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Virtual programming will be held Tuesday, August 3 through Saturday, August 7 and will include: a reunion-focused alumni town hall that also previews the new academic year, additional R Connections webinars, the summer book club capstone, and the traditional “That Was Then” storytelling session.
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In-person, on-campus programming will be held Friday, August 6 through Sunday, August 8, and will focus on alumni awards recognition, 2020 and 2021 reunion celebrations including our 20th Class Reunion, and other outdoor events such as Rally Run and prairie walk.
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Additionally, the Class of 2020 will officially be welcomed to our alumni community with a special commencement ceremony.
A nearer target is the #OneDayRally. It’s back again and this year, we have a little unfinished business to which we plan to attend. Last year we came in second place with 52 donors – that is almost HALF of our class! This year we aim to beat it and strive to be the most represented class on #OneDayRally. Will you help us get there? April 28th – mark your calendars! Join the conversation in our Facebook Group “Ripon College Class of 2000″ or feel free to reach out to CAMILLE CARLSON CLEMONS ’00 or KERSTEN HOLM LARSON ’00 with questions!
Some news notes from around the Class:
ELLEN SORENSEN ’00 of Ripon, Wisconsin, moderated a panel discussion via Zoom on September 
30, 2020, sponsored by the Center for Politics and the People at Ripon College and the League of Women Voters of the Ripon Area. “The Right to Vote: Past, Present and Future” addressed the historical and contemporary importance of the struggle to expand and protect suffrage in the United States. A recording of the panel discussion can be accessed here or it can be found by searching for Ripon College Live Events on YouTube. Ellen is also the new President of the Ripon Area League of Women Voters. She has been involved with the League both locally and at the state levels since 1990.
CAMILLE CARLSON CLEMONS ’00 of Fox River Grove, Illinois, has joined the Ripon College Board of Trustees as an Alumni Trustee. She started her career in operations at a global bank, then transitioned to sales in 2011. She currently is the director of business development for Cohen & Company, a public accounting firm, and is in charge of sales into the investment industry. The official announcement can be accessed here.
Red Hawks forever,
ANDRE MIKSHA ’00
(317) 219-9275
Your 2000 Class Agent