Reunion Registration is now open!
https://www.smith.edu/about-smith/alum/reunion
👉🏽 Reunion Attendance Realness Survey 👈🏽
We want to hear from you ’98 Sibs!
Please use the link to this super-quick questionnaire to give us some input:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1kvIRLa_QYAZHCITd5KWq7z_kZRYMCFmqZ5goGyE7uXU/edit
Reunion Attendance Assistance Application
We are dedicated to making our 25th reunion accessible for as many classmates as possible. For those of you for whom the cost of attending reunion may be a hardship, we have set aside funds for classmates who need financial support.
You can request support with this link:
All requests will be confidential.
Reunion Registration FAQs
Lots of info can be found via the main registration link above, and we’ve added some clarifications below based on questions our classmates shared in our FB group.
Smith Reunion Staff responded promptly to our questions when we reached out via email and phone.
On-Campus Housing:
*Please note that our class housing gets assigned based on registration numbers (class members & guests) plus accessibility needs, and will be assigned closer to reunion dates.
On-campus reunion housing is assigned based on accessibility needs and guest proximity as top priority. We try to accommodate spouses, partners, and children in double rooms (2 single beds); however, most rooms on campus are singles, with one single bed – guests will be assigned to a nearby room if a double is unavailable.
The “B&B” fee for reunion this year is $160, and it’s all or nothing: this guarantees you a bed as well as breakfast throughout reunion (Thursday, Friday & Saturday nights, plus breakfast Friday, Saturday & Sunday), regardless of when you arrive or depart.
If you or a guest of yours need a mattress, register for the $160 On-Campus Housing fee.
The College asks us to please register anyone 13 and older as an adult guest.
If you’re bringing a child who is 12 or younger, and the child can share your room and does NOT need a mattress, please register them as a child guest.
This means you can bring bedding & linens for them (air mattress, pillow, sleeping bag/bed linens, towel).
Breakfast will be provided for kids 12 and under at no additional cost.
Please register & pay for any lunches &/or dinners they will eat on campus.
The best way to to make sure your guests (including kids) are housed with / near you is to email reunionregistration@smith.edu once you’ve registered to clarify any specific needs/concerns.
See example here from a classmate via our FB group:
“For those asking about a guest. I spoke with the reunion people and they said to send an email after you’ve registered. So I went ahead and did that for my 15-year-old so that they knew that my daughter either needs to room with me in a double or have her single next to mine.”
Off-Campus Housing:
Our 25th Reunion is the same weekend as Commencement, Thursday, May 18 – Sunday, May 21.
Demand for Off-Campus Housing will be at a premium, so we urge you to make your arrangements as soon as possible, and note that many places have strict cancellation policies.
Meals:
- Unsure which on-campus meals you want to sign up for?
- The better option is definitely to hold off on registering for meals until you are more sure. Adding meals later is a quick and simple process that you can initiate with a simple email or phone call to us. Removing a meal later is also possible, but would mean that you spent money and would then need to be refunded. It’s a bit more of a process and we’d also like to avoid alums spending money on registration unnecessarily. Meal option availability is guaranteed throughout the registration window so there’s no downside to waiting — you won’t miss out!
Pricing & Deadlines:
- The deadline for the early bird pricing is April 20th
- After April 20th, meal prices will increase by $10
- The deadlines for adding meals AND registering for reunion are:
- Reunion Weekend I — May 4th (Class of 1998!!)
- Reunion Weekend II — May 11th
Need a ride?
Our classmate Mo Daviau is overseeing a reunion ride share exchange (thanks Mo!) for folks to arrange carpools from various locations including Logan and Bradley airports, the Boston and NYC areas, or potentially other points of origin: head on over to this form to submit your request for or offer of a ride to reunion!
Have other questions or need help with your registration?
Contact the Office of Alumnae Relations and Development:
- Phone: 800-526-2023 or 413-585-2150
- Email: reunionregistration@smith.edu
They’ve been very helpful and prompt in their replies.
What’s Happening?!
A brief overview of our reunion schedule…
When Should I Arrive? As soon as possible!
We encourage you to arrive Thursday (check-in officially begins at 4 pm) or early Friday to take advantage of this precious time together with our class members, as well as the variety of programs organized by the College. There are many Friday morning & afternoon – including numerous talks by Faculty (like being a student again, without homework!), receptions & gatherings for various groups, and open houses including the newly renovated Nielson Library, the Museum of Art, the Botanic Gardens & Plant House, and of course to stroll around campus & downtown.
Thursday dinner & Friday lunch on-campus are a great time to meet alums from other classes, as well as our own class members; or to go downtown and grab a bite.
We understand that a lot of class members will need to travel on Friday.
With that in mind, we’ve planned a Friday Afternoon Tea for our class (but of course!) as a way to gather and welcome each other as more of us have arrived.
Each evening, there’s a social hour before dinner. So, even if you plan to eat dinner off-campus, please join us for some casual time to catch up together.
Friday After Hours: You know we will be having a 90s dance party one way or another; and/or just hang out and chill with your fellow ‘98s.
(Alas, no more Karaoke at the VFW.)
Saturday morning: Ivy Day & Alum Parade.
Woot! You know the drill.
For the record, Alums traditionally wear WHITE shoes.
Alternatively, we encourage red shoes & accessories to coordinate with our class color ribbons, signs, etc.
But, bottom line, remember our theme: Come As You Are (including whatever shoes work for you).
Saturday lunch & afternoon:
So much to do around campus! How to fit in a trip to Herrell’s?!
Sign up for grab-and-go lunch on campus if you want to make it easy.
We have a casual class meeting planned in the time-slot immediately following lunch, so we’ll likely start gathering there during the lunch hour. Inspired by the Class of ‘97, we’re also encouraging a casual book swap during this time – take one, leave one, take it or leave it. No pressure.
Saturday afternoon is full of more activities and gatherings around campus, or might be when you need to visit Herrell’s, the Haymarket, or other favorite haunts in town.
Don’t be surprised if you want to be in two or more places at the same time!
Saturday’s social hour will be an extra-special one for us as a Milestone Reunion Class, so plan to attend!
Saturday dinner is traditionally when we have the most class members together for a meal, so we hope you’ll be there with us.
After that, Illumination Night!!!
(Fingers crossed for good weather.)
Then, an All-Reunion Dance Party
and/or
Chat & Chill back at Class HQ with classmates you’ve just met, and those who’ve known you more than half your life, and have printed photos of you to prove it.
Sunday
Make the most of every minute together til we have to say goodbye til next time.
You don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay in your dorm room after 1 pm.
So, maybe go back to Herrell’s or the Haymarket on your way out of town.
❤
Questions?
We don’t have every detail yet, but we will answer what we can.
Reunion Update, Nov. 2022:
Save the Dates: May 18 – 21, 2023!!!
Hello ‘98 Sibs, it’s your 25th Reunion Co-Chairs Regan & Sarah here, pictured above at the Reunion Alumnae Parade in May 2022 representing with our brass Class Standard.
We had SOOO much fun shadowing the Class of ‘97’s 25th reunion, and meeting members of other reunion classes, as well as current students and staff last May.
Can you believe our 25th Reunion is coming right up?! We’re especially excited to be on campus the same weekend when the Class of 2023 will be celebrating their Commencement.
Not convinced yet that you’ll attend?
Well, that’s where our Reunion Theme comes in:
Come As You Are
An unabashed quippy reference to one of the 90s Nirvana anthems of our Smith years?
You bet.
But also, we think, the perfect theme with which to welcome you ALL back – back into our class community online and hopefully also back on campus in person at Reunion in May 2023.
Whether you’ve maintained a strong connection to Smith and the friends you made during our time as students, or perhaps especially if your connection to Smith and your ‘98 Classmates could use some rekindling, ALL are welcomed, invited and encouraged to Come As You Are to our 25th.
This is what’s known as a Milestone Reunion (!!!) and we are hoping to have record attendance as we gather to share, support and celebrate each other and all we’ve survived (in the timeless words of Gloria Gaynor) and accomplished since graduation.
Anyone living their dream as they envisioned it in May 1998?
Anyone followed a path they’d never have been able to predict since then?
Anyone doing a bit of both? {Raising our hands}
Whatever your journey has been, we want to hear about it, and we want to spend a few precious days together on campus and in Northampton catching up, reminiscing, and of course, dancing with you.
To this end, we need your help.
Want to Help Get the Party Started? Join a Reunion Planning Committee!
We need some volunteers to help rally excitement and do some planning. Whether it’s your first reunion or sixth reunion (remember our 2-Year reunion in 2000?!), we welcome and encourage your participation to make this our most memorable reunion yet.
Please sign up at our Signup Genius for volunteer roles, or email us if you have any issues doing this, or have a volunteer idea that isn’t covered.
Want to lead a program during reunion?
Shannon Davis ‘98 is planning a “Sketch Smith” drawing event open to our class and any interested reunion attendee.
Want to offer yoga, a morning jog, or other activity for our class?
Let us know the program & your preferred day & time via email asap so we can work it into the schedule we’re planning now for Friday & Saturday.
Pro Tip:
Need an idea that might convince a friend to co-chair with you?
Offer to treat them to Herrell’s during Reunion 2023!
Music Playlist Chair (1-2)
Remember when our 10th Reunion Committee made us mixed CDs?
Well, let’s make our Playlist together:
SMITH 1998 25th Reunion Playlist!
Yes, I did just get totally sidetracked starting this collaborative playlist on Spotify. Now it’s your turn to add songs! If you have trouble uploading songs or accessing the list, please add your suggestions here.
As a Music Playlist Chair, we’ll look to you to add song suggestions from classmates, and before reunion in May, to make separate playlists (with this master playlist as a resource) for different reunion events, including the DANCE PARTY!
We gathered awesome ideas from May 2022 when we shadowed the Class of 1997’s 25th reunion. The Class of 1992 wiped the dance floor at the All Campus Dance Party, and so limber up and get ready. Wherever you self-identify on the spectrum from Wallflower to Center Stage Dance Circle Star – there’s room for everyone at this party.
House Connectors (at least 1 per house)
We’d like a volunteer (or two) from each house to head up communications with smaller groups of classmates. Want to rally other groups – by major, JYA, a cappella group, sports team, or other activity or affinity? Let us know who you want to help connect. We’re open to what moves you!
Class Headquarters Decoration & Snack Chairs (2)
Live locally & willing to do a Costco run for seltzers and snacks to stock our class headquarters? Able to arrive Thursday morning to dive into our Class Archive – lovingly preserved on campus, and waiting for you at our Class’s Reunion HQ when you arrive – to decorate our HQ with some vintage treasures? Can’t wait to unfurl those concert posters, unfold those WOZQ flyers and shake out those Celebration of Sisterhood T-Shirts? This role was made for YOU!
Feel strongly about your reunion memorabilia?
and/or: Have graphic design skills?
We’ve got some ideas and need someone(s) to pull it all together.
We have resources to share and also welcome your input & expertise.
Social Media Chairs (2-3)
Yeah, we know, FaceBook… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Our Facebook Closed Group is the best social media tool we’ve got to communicate with only members of our class.
If you want to help generate posts to drum up reunion excitement, this one’s for you!
Group Name:
Official Smith College Class of 1998 Closed Group
If you want to join the closed FB group under a pseudonym so you can stay anonymous on FB outside of the class closed group, reach out and we’ll work together to make it happen.
*If you’ve got social media skills and know-how, and can help us create other closed-access social media Class of 1998 closed groups on other platforms, please volunteer!
We’d love to use Instagram, but don’t know of a way to only share content with Class of 1998 members. Let us know if we’re missing something…
Ivy Day – Alumnae Parade Sign Chair (1-2)
You know you’ve got some puns you’ve been keeping up the sleeve of your white(ish) Ivy Day outfit. Now’s your chance to Print It Like a Polaroid Picture circa 1998, and parade around with your sign on a stick. You know who you are! And in case you need some inspiration:
Photo Archive Chair (1-2)
Last for now, but not least, we want to see your pictures, and we want to share them at this reunion and at future reunions. So get out those photo albums, fire up your scanner, or just snap a pic of your pics with your phone (because, yeah, time management is important and technology has come a long way in 25 years) and then upload them to Google Drive so we can create a digital scrapbook which we can share on a screen in our Class Headquarters during reunion. And then, through the wonders of cloud storage, it’ll be there for our subsequent reunions. Work smarter, not harder, right?!
Here’s a LINK to a google drive that the College is maintaining for our Class Archive:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1KNSkn8rY1YI3J8AIbxTj3-e6dM39Nk-8
We hope some of the blasts from the past included above have got you laughing and smiling (even if you’re shaking your head and slightly cringing) and getting excited to Come As You Are.
Whether you have questions, concerns or other comments, we look forward to hearing from you, and working together to make this reunion epic – as we re-define epic together 25 years later.
Your Reunion Planning Co-Chairs,
Regan Gill Falcon & Sarah Szwajkos
Smith College Class of '98 25th Milestone Reunion 