Class Reunion Guide

Looking to host a class reunion? Here are some resources that may be helpful in your planning process.

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Work through your Class Agent to reach out to classmates via email and social media (class Facebook or Instagram page) to form a committee to plan your reunion. You may have a single planning committee that meets in person, on conference calls or virtually via gotomeeting.com, Zoom or House Party. It may be helpful to create subcommittees to plan and manage specific tasks.



Some reunion committees like to plan 24 months in advance, but most committees start no more than a year before their event. A lot depends on how elaborate an event you are planning. It is good to get the rough details nailed down 6-12 months before your event so that classmates have plenty of lead time for planning. Once you decide the date/location of your reunion, send a “Save the Date” announcement to all classmates. Find a suggested reunion timeline here!

Form Committes

Consider Your Timing

Setting the price for the reunion is especially important. Make sure you have all your costs outlined prior to setting a ticket price. You can create a low, middle, and high chart of estimated costs to help with pricing.

TIP: Early in the process, choose a reliable person to be responsible for the finances. This person will help create and oversee the budget, disburse payments, maintain accurate records and update the reunion committee.

Even in the age of social media, you cannot rely 100% on any

one method of communication to your class. When you send a “Save the Date” notice, direct classmates to your reunion website, Facebook page, etc. Create a contact “tree” to have classmates get in touch with friends or reach out to find those who have little contact information available. Collect email addresses with all contacts, as that will be a very convenient way to communicate as the process moves forward. However, plan on the fact that even today some may not be connected to the web and may need materials mailed to them.

Make a Budget

Use Multiple Contact Methods

Financial Planning

In years past, a key part of reunion planning was rallying your classmates to make a class gift to IND. Since the school’s closure, the INDAA has been forced to become self sufficient in order to move forward. Creating and maintaining our own website, becoming a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and paying taxes, subscribing to software to handle our database, email communications and financial needs, purchasing insurance, etc. — these expenses add up quickly and are ongoing. Your support is not just appreciated; it is greatly needed. Please include a donation to the INDAA in your reunion budget. One of the challenges each reunion committee faces is how to pay for upfront costs associated with early planning, before you have begun registrations and collecting money.

Some of the early costs you may face are:

• Stationery supplies and postage
• Printing (reunion books, name tags, etc.)
• Gifts, novelties, decorations
• Website development and hosting
  
• Reunion t-shirts or other promotional products
• Liability insurance
• Reunion facilities deposit
• Catering deposit
• Entertainment, music deposit, class gift to INDAA

Occasionally, a class will have a generous member who will cover the upfront costs, but that is not always the case, especially with younger alumnae who may have more limited resources. Some reunion classes have found it helpful to have each committee member put in what they can afford into a petty cash fund to get the reunion started. Generally referred to as “seed money,” these funds can either be redistributed to the contributors or donated back to the fundraising efforts. Asking for donations from committee members and friends may be the best way to collect the needed costs.

Key Considerations

Finding classmates can be a challenging aspect of reunion planning, but it is important and rewarding. Though the INDAA has a list of contact information for your class, it is only as good as the updates that have been shared with us. Your reunion will be a valuable source of new contact information to keep our lists current. Be careful with access to contact information. Many people do not want their confidential information shared with others, even classmates. Do not publish or give out information for a classmate without first getting approval from that individual. Your class list from the INDAA will have the most recent known address, phone number and email address for each class member. Have everyone you contact reach out to their old friends from school and return the information received back to the chair. In the process of your class outreach, you will undoubtedly find that some class information needs updating. It is especially important to add information on any missing classmates as soon as you get it. Keeping accurate records is one of the keys to your success. Highlight or keep a colored font for any changed information, and please be sure to send all updated records to the INDAA so they can be updated in our database.

TIP: The INDAA (through your class agent) will provide you with the most up-to-date contact information we have in our database.

Locating Classmates & Advertising

Send out a survey to your class (e.g., through surveymonkey.com, Facebook polls or Google form) to get more information on general interest in attending the reunion and preferences for locations, venues, activities, cost, etc. Find sample form that can be edited for your class’s needs here! Consider contacting classmates individually to give them the date/time/location and approximate cost and update contact their information.

Reunion Dates & Timing

It is important to consider the estimated size of your reunion, the size of the event space and the cost. Be aware, too, that a high price dictated by a costly venue may deter classmates from attending. Sometimes smaller, more intimate restaurants or clubs are great options, particularly for first-time reunions when you are not sure exactly how many people to expect. Consider access, parking and size of the venue. The cost of renting a facility can range from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars. The fees add up as you request more food, beverages and services. You will have to do some early budgeting and ticket price estimating to determine what is going to work for your class. Unless you have that lucky situation where someone in your class is willing to cover the entire cost of the reunion, registration fees may be your only source of recouping the reunion costs. Find a copy of the Suggested Reunion Venue and Vendor List here!

Choosing a Venue

What To Do at Your Reunion

The three most popular things done at almost any reunion are eating, drinking and socializing. There are a variety of ways to do them all. Consider your budget, venue and number of people

attending. Will there be a sit-down dinner, a buffet dinner, or no dinner at all? Dinner does increase the cost of an event substantially. It is possible to have just as much fun over brunch or hors d’oeuvres and cocktails. Consider price if you plan to have an open bar, a few complimentary drinks or bottles of wine or a cash bar. Many places have an in-house food and drink vendor, but some ask you to find your own caterer. Check to see if the venue or caterer has a food or drink minimum. Consider anticipated attendance and budget.