To Chris Young, BA ’80, MA ’83, GW represents much more than an institution of learning. It’s a source of opportunity, a bastion of friends and collaborators, and a community.

As the president of The George Washington Alumni Association, Young makes time to stay involved in many aspects of GW while being a partner in a top consulting and financial services firm. “My involvement first started with a couple of professors who asked me to come back and talk to their classes about my experiences in my career,” Young says.

Young, a partner with Deloitte Consulting, LLP, spoke regularly to GW students regarding his career for several years. In the early 2000s, he was tapped to serve as treasurer of GWAA, and his involvement with the University deepened. “That experience made me much more involved with a broader perspective on campus,” he says.

As GWAA president, Young works with its board of directors to develop strategies for reaching out to alumni and providing them with special benefits and services exclusive to GW alumni.

“This year, GWAA has three goals,” Young says. First, the GWAA wants to reach out to alumni to let them know they will always be members of the University community. Secondly, the GWAA is striving to cultivate a culture of giving among alumni; they can give by volunteering time, networking with GW grads, mentoring students, and hosting other activities. Finally, GWAA is working to give alumni a collective voice on campus.

These goals for GWAA energize Young. In the short-term, he is eager to participate in Colonials Weekend, October 20-22. “I really look forward to being able to get involved with all of the different touch points with individuals on campus,” he says. On his agenda: meeting friends at the Weekend’s kickoff party on Friday night, visiting the Business School, which he attended, and reconnecting with professors at the Deans’ Breakfasts.

“All aspects of Colonials Weekend are fun,” Young says. His wife, Connie, an alumna of Trinity University in Washington, and his children, Tyler, 7, and Catherine, 3, also enjoy Colonials Weekend activities.

Most of all, Young looks forward to reconnecting with alumni and friends of the University during Colonials Weekend and beyond. “GW was, in my case, six years of my life, and there are a lot of professors and students who I’ve stayed in touch with and will be my lifelong friends,” he says.