Committees - 

Much of the work of the Cornell Club of Washington is conducted by its committees of volunteers, which include the Executive Committee, standing committees provided for in the bylaws, and committees appointed by the president or board of directors. For additional information about a committee, please email its chair.

Program Committee (Events)

The Vice-President (Program) is responsible for developing, promoting and conducting events for the Club's enjoyment, serves as Chair of the Program Committee, and appoints such Vice-chairs as are necessary to the complete functioning of the committee responsibilities.    

• Chair: Steve P, VP Programming
• Purpose: Coordinates the club's provision of a calendar of programming for the Club. Initiates and develops educational/cultural, social and sports events (and event series.) Supports the VP of Community Service to publicize their community service events. Supports additional Directors to advertise fund-raising events such as galas. Ensures that gatherings for the purposes of CCW's service to members are publicized on the calendar of events when requested or predictable such that the club promotes transparency and inclusivity such that the club thrives with ongoing infusion of talent, perspectives, resources, networks, skills and energy.
• Tasks/Responsibilities:  Sets costs for events. Develops event postings. Posts onto Events Calendar the meetings requested by Directors. Using Wild Apricot, posts event invitations that provide members event details, a means to register and pay. Sends event reminders to registrants. Proactively sends to hosts the registration lists in order to record attendance and organize name-tags, supplies, etc. and supply updates in the event of post-ponement or cancellation. When registration is light during week prior to event, re-sends invitations and can coordinate with Ivy Social to send invitations to additional Alumni Groups. (Ivy Social contactability is built into Wild Apricot and should be maintained.) Encourages dissemination of event promotion and celebration on social media, in news blasts from i-Modules. Reports regularly to the Board on the success of past events and provides insight to members on how to plan, calendar and see through successful events, including by coming to events with materials for success: projectors, Cornell swag, drink tickets, nametags, etc.  Maintains the accuracy, clarity, currency and "consistently clean appearance" of the event postings that feed onto Wild Apricot's Events list and Calendar. Draws forth volunteer hosts by various means (newsletter, social media, Linked In, CCW homepage) and with easy-to-follow, thorough instructions and advice to plan and host events. Provides such data as requested: advice and lists of potential event venues, advice on how to budget and manage re-payment of costs incurred (with support from Treasurer), advice on use of club funds when useful to increasing participation in events. Predicting and advising on equipment and tech needs to run events is appreciated as is Subbing for a host who suddenly cannot make an event.
• Time commitment:  This committee requires extensive and ongoing, timely, often daily e-mail communication, however no experience is necessary to serve. Ease with applying computer software, spreadsheets, databases is recommended but can be developed through instruction. For most members of the committee, a focus on initiating, posting, and advising others for timely calendaring events is their primary function. Committee members can step forward to create and run events based on their availability (avoiding dates when they may be too busy.) 
• Regular meetings of this committee occur (when? quarterly?)
• Goals for 2026: Enlist a co-VP for Programming and instruct that person on how to use Wild Apricot to calendar and post invitations and ensure accurate registration records and timely distribution of attendance sheets for hosts.  Develop a committee to impart more institutional knowledge and develop a pipeline of leadership. See that events are promoted by new means of communication (i.e., Facebook and Instagram and the new quarterly newsletter.) Begin to develop documentation of guidance for this committee as necessary to ensure the smooth roll-over to future generations of Directors.
• Members in 2026:  Steve Piekarec (VP Programming) and Board Members Jeff G, Doug R and A’ndrea VS

Scholarship Committee

The Vice-President (Scholarship) is responsible for the Scholarship Committee for the Club and appoints such Chairs as are necessary to the complete functioning of the committee    

Chair in 2026:  Kathryn Horlick

Purpose of Committee: 

To award scholarships to Cornell students from the Washington, DC metropolitan area and stipends for living expenses to students in residence at Cornell-in-Washington.

Tasks/ Responsibilities:

Scholarships.  The Vice-President for Scholarship sends application forms in August to sophomores, juniors and seniors from the DC area who are eligible for federal work-study assistance.  The students are invited to apply for one of five scholarships endowed by Cornell alumni.  The applications are reviewed and candidates selected for interviews.  Recipients are chosen from the pool of interviewees by vote of members of the Committee. 

Stipends. The Vice-President sends an application form for distribution to students in residence at the Cornell-in-Washington/Wolpe Center at the beginning of the spring semester and the summer session.  Students who are eligible for federal work-study assistance are invited to apply for stipends provided by the Cornell Club of Washington (CCW) to help them meet the cost of living in DC.  The application and interview process is similar to the process for choosing scholarship recipients.

The Vice-President prepares three appeal letters to donors to be sent out on or around Giving Tuesday, in mid-December and in the last week of December.  The letters are sent to the Vice-President for Communications for distribution to a list of of more than 8000 CCW members and donors maintained on I-Modules.

The Vice-President prepares an annual appeal for Cornell Giving Day, which occurs during the spring semester.  The appeal is sent to Cornell University for distribution to a wider audience.

The CCW Treasurer sends out acknowledgements for all donations received in response to the December and Cornell Giving Day appeal letters, as well as donations made at other times throughout the year.

The Vice-President for Scholarship documents all procedures and policies of the Committee and makes this document available to committee members as needed to ensure continuity of the Committee’s work. 

Participation/attendance requirements of committee members:  

Committee members are expected to participate in three awards processes per year.  The VP for Scholarship sends to Committee members a package of  applications for scholarships or stipends that have been submitted by interested students.  Members must review them and choose at least four applicants that they would like to interview.  An evening interview session by Zoom is scheduled.  Members must come prepared with a question they would like to ask each applicant.  After the interviews are completed, the applicants will be discussed and recipients chosen.

No prior Experience with scholarship awards or college financial assistance is needed to serve on this committee

Time commitment:   Committee members should count on devoting six to 10 hours to the application process three times a year, for a total of approximately 18 to 30 hours per year.

Busiest times of year:  February,  June and September,

How often, long, when and where are the committee meetings:  Meetings will take place during in the evening three times a year on Zoom, and will last approximately two and a half hours.

Goals for 2025-2026:  Goals for this year include holding one round of scholarship awards for DC area Cornell students and two rounds of stipend awards for spring and summer Cornell students in the Cornell-in-Washington program; preparing appeals for donations; exploring a system of rotating leadership for the Committee; and the provision of content for Instagram postings to the Communications Committee.

Committee members '25-'26: 

Kathryn Horlick, VP

Faiz A

Shawna A

Kwame C

Julia H

Alex P

Morgann R

Kobe S

Communications Committee

The Vice-President (Communications) is responsible for the print and electronic communications of the Club, including CCW News, e-mails, and the Club's website. In addition, the committee is responsible for coordinating the Club's applications that support the membership database, listserv, and the Internet posting of events.     <-- this wording is vestigial from prior to 2025. The lasts sentence is not comprehended by Maggie, but Steve might know more.

• Chair in 2026:  Karen Joostema    As chair, the VP / Communications serves on the Executive Committee for the Board and oversees a committee that includes a newsletter writer, a web editor, and Wild Apricot systems administrator(s.) The chair projects the needs for Board Members to send communications to the membership and facilitates the process, deciding which platform will send the content. 
• Purpose:  provide a means for effectively communicating messages to our membership by using such platforms as Wild Apricot, Social Media (Instagram and Facebook) and with the support of entities and data in Ithaca, I-modules. 
• Tasks/ Responsibilities:  Effectively document for Board Use the operations and contacts of our committee for ease of training and application for year-to-year access and use. Maintain the public facing web pages to ensure that the content is kept fresh and current and appealing. Promote cross-training of the technologies involved for communications. Maintains and distributes as needed the passwords to communications systems. Oversee the assignment of roles/duties to carry out club communications (Web administrator, web editors, social media poster.
• Participation/Attendance of committee members: attending all Board Meetings and tracking the Minutes is highly recommended as is surveying the VPs for content to message and proactively planning for the timely roll-out. According to the defined role of the committee member, each will conduct their planning and execution of communications supported by a year-long calendar of known needs, operations and a cadence of themes across the year. (That calendar is under development in 2025.)  There is no set schedule of Communications Committee meetings but the VP is likely to need intense communication time with individual task managers on a monthly basis. Some weeks will be more intense than others. Work gets intense to ensure the success of the yearly elections in May/June as well as "Start the New Year" messaging after a summer hiatus in the the Fall when a new slate of Board Members will be oriented and trained. Each fall the web site needs updates that reflect a new "Class of __" on the web pages that address the costs of membership. 
• Time Commitment: is variable according to the role (web editor and Wild Apricot administrators put in several hours per week. Newsletter content managers have a couple of hours a month to ask for input from Board Members, finalize the content and get it sent on schedule (quarterly.) The social media manager is consulting the minutes, homepage and Board Communications to post content at least once a week and in this way engages members and drives up membership, donations for scholarship, and volunteerism (in the community and to run the club.)
• Experience needed: experience in communications, web applications, social media, graphic design, running Wild Apricot, editing, and database organization is all useful but not required. Members of the club can train our volunteers. 
• Goals for 2025-2026:  It's a "building" year and we begin by evaluating what is in place in order to sense new needs and priorities. 1) audit to understand what communications systems have historically served the CCW in order to make recommendations for forward development. 2) Develop a hierarchy of roles within the Communications Committee and define the roles played as well as the duties related (i.e., Web Administrator, Web Editor, Social Media Manager, Newsletter Editor.  3) Develop documentation of our contacts, passwords and processes used in committee work to have available for future use. Store such in CCW's "digital filing cabinet." 4) Develop a year-long calendar to document a strategic use of communications systems, noting intense times of communication, and facilitating efficient use of volunteer hours. 5) Leverage our social media to increase membership by making posts no less frequently than 4 times a month. 5) Ensure that the CCW home page and/or web pages are refreshed with timely, up-to-date text as well as graphics that have not gone stale. 6) Reduce the outdated content on the Administrative side of Wild Apricot by deleting old files and/or having them moved to a section that houses "history" of  the club if the club is going to assign a "historian" the duties to manage such files.
• Committee members '25-'26 are Board members Karen Joostema (VP) Maggie C (Acting Webmaster), Feliz S (Calendar Documentor -Coordinator), Emma G (Social Media coordinator) and Wendy W (Newsletter Coordinator.)
• 
  

Community Service Committee

The Vice-President (Community Service) chairs the Community Service Committee, which manages periodic service events. The chair appoints vice-chairs as are necessary to the functioning of the committee.

• Chair in 2026:   Maggie Carpenter, VP/ Community Service
• Purpose:  Our PRIMARY work involves planning, posting, and interfacing to ensure the success of 2 Cornell Cares events per year.  (VP/CS provides a monthly report of our activities at the Board Meetings.)
• As able and willing, committee members initiate and lead out ADDITIONAL service projects, programs, charity fundraisers and events and meet-ups at charity organizations  with which we partner for their success. They apply event-planning resources for 2026 that are useful and currently housed at the VP's site here and noted at on CCW's web site at volunteer resources and opportunities. 
• We nurture volunteerism within CCW which makes CCW a thriving, attractive and purposeful organization by ensuring communication to our membership via CCW homepage, social media, event listings, and the (quarterly) club newsletter blasts.
• Keep an up-to-date list of our resources and community service involvement under "Volunteer" at the CCW web site.
• Effectively document for Board Use the operations and contacts of our committee for ease of training and application for year-to-year access and use.
• Participation/Attendance of committee members is strongly recommended at the half-day "Cornell Cares" events that we run-- one in Jan and one in July or June.  Attending the additional CCW CS events that a committee member herself initiates, chairs or vice-chairs is a "given" unless an able sub can be arranged in an emergency.
  
• No experience needed! This is a great, low intensity committee to join to get a feel for CCW!

• Time commitment is variable per month... only about 10-20 hours cumulative for the entire year.

• Time of Year: most intense periods are September/Oct-- to establish a schedule and direction for the two major "Cornell Cares" events that will occur in January and July. 

  (Ensuring PR support from Ithaca for Cornell Cares events, especiallymay require starting 12 weeks ahead (for Cornell Cares events.)
  
  (For additional service initiatives that the committee could take on at other times on the calendar, we typically research, plan, post and manage registrations/ communications about the event over the 6 weeks prior to the date of its conduct.) 

• How often and when are CS meetings?  Only as necessary 4-6 x per year, usually first Monday, 6 pm by Zoom. Additional committee business is conducted primarily by email or phone.  (Attending also the "Second Tuesday" Board meetings for CCW is encouraged but not required.)
• Goals for 2025-2026:  1) successfully conduct both a January and a June (or July) "Cornell Cares" event that is promoted by PR from Ithaca and from CCW. 2) improve and update documentation of our contacts and committee work to have available for future use in CCW's"digital filing cabinet" (which is this platform called Wild Apricot.) 3) Creatively make our community service events inclusive and "socially bonding" for club members.  4) Celebrate volunteerism by posting at least 4 times on Instagram before July, 2026. 5) Ensure that the CCW home page and/or web pages regularly spotlights and opportunities for public service, refreshing and keeping them timely.
• Committee members '25-'26 are board members Maggie Carpenter (VP), Liz Greenidge as well as additional CCW members: Elysa L-G and Eric B.

Membership Committee

The Vice-President (Membership) serves as membership Chair, appoints such chairs as are necessary to the complete functioning of the membership responsibilities, and maintains an up to date mailing list of the active members of the Club and a list of all alumni within the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.

• Chair in 2026: Morgann Reeves
  
  
• Purpose:   Supports effective, timely and inclusive communications with new members to ensure a developing sense of CCW identity, involvement in its activities and "belonging." Oversees outreach to increase membership in CCW. Conducts outreach using various creative methods such as the web pages and social media and I-Modules blasts. Advises webmaster and liaises with Treasurer to keep web pages and online membership applications forms current according to fees for annual and lifetime memberships and according to various criteria such as the applicant's graduation year. Processes applications for membership. Builds and maintains an accurate membership database within Wild Apricot. Reviews membership database for currency such that communications generated by the Wild Apricot platform are successfully delivered. Interfaces with Office of Alumni Affairs and Development about membership records as needed. Responds in a timely manner to queries about membership by actively monitoriing the Membership G-mail address.
  
  
• Tasks: (including any communications messages that are sent by the committee:)   See above. Ensures that new members receive a welcome letter, and that lapsed members receive communication to encourage them to re-join. Can correspond in other creative ways to strengthen members' connection to and within the club such as invitations to attend Board Meetings and other events.
  
  
• Experience needed? None; we will train. Helpful to have experience managing databases, spreadsheets, web-based communications.
• Time Commitment: Most work is done by e-mail (with occasional Zooms as needed.)
• Busiest time of year:  Summer and Fall are most intense times of the year when updating records and fees to join happens.  
• Members in 2026:  Morgann Reeves (VP Membership) supported by Board Member Tomoko M, with the support of non-Board folks: Jo M, and Erica E.

Executive Committee

The Executive Committee consists of the President, the First Vice-President, the Secretary, the Treasurer, and the Vice-President (Program). The Executive Committee meets on the call of the President or any other member of the Executive Committee to take such action as may be taken when the Board of Directors is unable to meet. 

• Meetings occur approximately this often: at least once prior to each full Board Meeting in order to publish an agenda for such.
• Times of intense involvement are prior to the first "orienting" meeting of each new board in order to train and facilitate goal-setting and establishing the meetings for the year.

Finance Committee (not utilized for 2026)

• Mel Zurn, Treasurer, is supported in his work by Board members Brad Olander and Alex V.
  
  

Investment and Audit Committee

The Investment and Audit Committee is governed by the Charter of the Committee as the Board shall approve from time to time.

• Chair in 2026

• Elliott G serves on this committee, yes?

CAAAN Committee

Historically, the Vice-President (CAAAN) was responsible for secondary school activities of the Club and acts as Chair of the CAAAN Committee. The Vice-President shall appoint such Vice-chairs as are necessary to the complete functioning of the committee responsibilities.     

• Chair in 2026: Liz Mueller
• Members of CAAAN and therefor this committee are selected by Offices in Ithaca. Liz is a point-person for coordination of information but a "committee" structure and duties is evolving in 2026.

Nominating Committee

The president appoints a Nominating Committee of at least five persons that nominates officers and directors to be voted for at the Spring Election Meeting. At least two members of the Nominating Committee must be from the membership at large and not be members of the Board of Directors. 

• Chair in 2026: Gil K.

Gala Committee  (for November, 2026)