Black Alumni Weekend promises more activities, more alums and more fun

By Chelyen Davis

Tiffany Gary has a message for Virginia Commonwealth University alums on the fence about attending April’s Black Alumni Weekend: You’ll be missing out if you stay home.

That’s because this year’s signature weekend, April 23-26, includes more events, and organizers expect more alums than ever before to come to campus to reminisce and celebrate culture, community and the power of VCU connections.

In fact, since 2021 when the celebration was virtual because of the COVID pandemic, attendance has more than doubled, from 454 alums registered in 2022, to more than 1,100 who came to last year’s weekend.

“Every year we keep going and going and getting bigger,” said Gary, a 2000 VCU graduate who chairs the VCU Black Alumni Council Programs and Events Committee that leads the alumni weekend planning. “We really have rounded out the weekend to be not just the same old thing. We try to add a little bit of variety every year, so that if you came last year, you’re going to miss out if you don’t come this year.”

New events this year include a coffee tour featuring VCU alum-owned coffee shops in Jackson Ward and a “State of the Black Alumni Council” presentation and social gathering to give alums opportunities to get involved with the council and its activities.

Not a coffee drinker? The Black Alumni Golf Outing may be a better fit. Or the Ram Comedy Jam featuring comedian, actress and VCU alum Cocoa Brown. Or Friday night’s Bar Wars cocktail competition featuring local mixologists. There’s also the Saturday night dance at the Hippodrome with DJ Hammer, “Brunch and Brew,” a service opportunity and two different wellness events. New bundled ticket options allow attendees to save on tickets to multiple events.

Traditional parts of the celebration have expanded as well, such as the Saturday block party at Park Plaza near the Compass.

According to Jared Kline, assistant director of DAR Signature Events in VCU’s Office of Alumni Relations, the block party has grown 20%-30% each of the past few years — last year nearly a thousand alumni attended. The block party features food trucks, DJ Rayvon, Black alumni-owned businesses, and tents from D9 Greek organizations, Black alumni groups and other campus organizations like Developing Men of Color and the VCU NAACP chapter.

In 2024, the block party introduced the Black Alumni Vendor Showcase, an opportunity for alums who own businesses to highlight their work. Six alums participated in its first year; that doubled to 12 last year, and more than 15 are expected this year.

Larry Powell, a 1985 VCU graduate, has witnessed the weekend’s evolution into a dynamic, event-filled gathering spread over three or four days. He started attending Black Alumni Weekend in the 1990s and then spent more than 26 years, as both an alum and VCU staff member, helping organize the weekend.

“What they’re doing right now I think is just fantastic, in terms of the variety of activities they’re providing to alumni,” Powell says. “I can’t say enough about the people who succeeded me. They’re doing some great things and I’m looking forward to it expanding.”

Overall, the weekend is an opportunity for alums to get together with friends, have a good time, and celebrate the experiences and connections that they shared as VCU students.

“When I was at VCU, I always felt like a family or connected with a lot of people at VCU,” said Daniel Brisker, a 2009 VCU graduate who served as president of VCU’s Black Alumni Council from 2022-24. “So I’ve always felt like VCU has always been my family.”

Lucy Hudson, Ed.D., who has four degrees from VCU, said the weekend shows students what is possible.

“When we think about students seeing alumni and knowing one day they can be alumni, it’s a beautiful piece,” she said. “It’s a beautiful involvement of the mission of the Black Alumni Council.”

Gary said the weekend is an important way to keep alumni connected with VCU and with their experience there.

“We have to remember our roots and where we come from,” she said. “Coming together is an opportunity to reconnect, so you don’t forget you come from a great institution that’s growing and thriving and something to be proud of. You might have gotten your education here … but don’t forget, this is home.” 

She urged VCU alums, especially younger generations, to affiliate with the Black Alumni Council to be a part of strengthening connections for alumni.

“I would tell them to get involved with the council because that is how you create a legacy for those that come behind you,” she says. “We’re all connected. It’s great that you have gotten your degree and you have matriculated at this wonderful institution. But the way we grow and the way we amplify .. is to leave something for people who are coming behind us.”

Register for Black Alumni Weekend by March 31 and get early-bird pricing for all events.