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History

The ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ Geography Alumni Alliance (ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½GAA) was founded in August 2009 by Geography Alumni Chris Nallan and Scott Baker. Initially ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½GAA began as an Association, but shortly after became an Alliance. The word Alliance presented a more solid representation of the camaraderie between the geography alumni and the department faculty.

From the beginning, ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½GAA’s purpose was to keep the connection between the department and the alumni. As ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½GAA has grown, its purpose has evolved to maintain the connection amongst alumni through several annual events. In the fall during Homecoming Weekend, ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½GAA hosts a BBQ where all faculty, alumni and families are invited to an informal gathering. The spring brings Pork in the Park weekend where alumni can gather together to take advantage of the largest pork BBQ festival east of the Mississippi. In late spring, ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½GAA takes a trip to various locations outside of ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½.

Lastly, Alumni voluntarily take their time to share and present what they're learned to current geography students at ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½ in what has become known as Geography Alumni Presentations (GAP). In ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½GAA's short existence, alumni have given presentations on how to look for graduate schools, the ups and downs of being an on-air meteorologist, and the excitement of being the Chief Scientist aboard a ship in the Gulf of Mexico.