Beach Connection Magazine : Fall 2017 Fall 2017 | Page 18

• Stay Connected $12m ANNA W. NGAI ALUMNI & VISITOR CENTER GROUNDBREAKING $5.6m RAISED TO DATE Designated as a university priority, the Anna W. Ngai Alumni and Visitor Center will elevate the alumni presence on campus. The Alumni and Visitor Center will foster programming dedicated to social and professional networking opportunities between students and alumni. If you want to learn more about the Alumni and Visitor Center and/or other opportunities to support alumni programming and the university, please join us at an upcoming gathering: October 10 in Orange County January 25 in Long Beach For more details, contact Ricki McManuis, Director of Development, via phone at [phone] or email at [email protected]. Welcome a New Board Member James Ahumada 2011, B.A. Political Science Senior Communications Manager, Associated Students, Inc. Our newest addition to the board is former student body president James Ahumada. A Southern California native, James is truly an alum who bleeds black and gold. For him, it was always Long Beach. “My mom went here, my aunt when here and we always loved visiting the city growing up,” said Ahumada. “Visiting the campus for the first time sealed the deal!” After earning a degree in political science, Ahumada worked in Washington, D.C. for longtime Congressman Henry Waxman. There he served as legislative assistant and deputy press secretary, handling education, labor and financial services policy issues. While in D.C., James volunteered for many CSU regional events and was a founding member of the Cal State – D.C. Alumni Network, now over 250 members strong. James returned to Long Beach to work with ASI, where he now oversees communications and marketing and trains student leaders on working with the media. Ahumada is a proud Long Beach resident, Rotarian and alumni board chair for the Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity. He looks forward to helping expand the reach of the association in the years to come. 18 BE ACH CONNEC TION