University of Maryland Eastern Shore
National Alumni Association
OUR HISTORY
UMES National Alumni Association (1959)
What is known from oral histories is that alumni of that era were altruistic and motivated to lend their time, energy and financial resources to a growing institution that soon became Maryland State College.
By 1955, alumni were keeping formal records and elected Edward Wilkins, a 1937 industrial arts graduate, as their president. A public school educator in Charles and Washington counties and in Baltimore, Wilkins was a natural choice to lead the organization since he is credited with helping establish and serving as president of the school’s first alumni chapter in Baltimore in the mid-1940s.
The Maryland State College Alumni Association, Inc. was established formally under state law on June 6, 1963 “to promote the interests and welfare of the Maryland State College and to assist in furthering mutually beneficial relations because focus has remained the same. The UMES National Alumni Association today has had chapters with enthusiastic members who assisted in advancing the interests of the university. They were based in Annapolis, Baltimore, Southern Maryland, the Eastern Shore, Washington, D.C., Southeastern Virginia, Atlanta, Detroit, New York, Philadelphia, Raleigh, N.C., Plainfield, N.J. and Accra, Ghana. Today, there are chapters in Baltimore, MD, Greater Annapolis, MD, MD Eastern Shore Tri-County area, New York Tri-State area, Southeastern Virginia, Southern Maryland, Washington Metropolitan area and an affinity chapter for Organizational Leadership graduates.
Richard H. Jones (1976), holds the distinction of being elected alumni leader two different times (1995-97 and 2001-03).
With the support of its members, the UMES National Alumni Association, Inc. continues to invest in the university by providing ongoing contributions to the UMES National Alumni Association Endowed Scholarship and the UMES National Alumni Association Athletic Endowment Fund.
The UMES National Alumni Association is a loyal and steadfast supporter of the university’s mission and the maintenance of its traditions and legacy.
(Courtesy of - Kimberly Conway Dumpson & Bill Robinson from "Celebrating the Journey: The 125th Anniversary of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore - 1886-2011")
An Oct. 25, 1947 football program for a game between the Princess Anne College Trojans and the visiting Fayetteville State Teachers College Broncos features a photo of the Rev. Leon Moore, pastor of Haven Methodist Church in Philadelphia. Above, his photo was a caption identifying him as "President Of Princess Anne College Alumnae Association," which erroneously implies the school was a single-gender institution when in fact men and women attended the school together since its early days.
Established around 1947 when it was still known as Maryland State College, the UMES National Alumni Association is the official representative body for more than 18,000 UMES alumni in Maryland and throughout the world. At UMES, you’re a “Flying Hawk from Day One.”
The purpose of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore National Alumni Association is to passionately provide provision to uplift the students and university stead. The University has given each alumnus a tool box to be used for outstanding service and to add value to the community, state, nation, and the world. The efforts and hard work of the alumni is firmly founded and focused to build, maintain, and sustain the university in a way that it becomes the major resource for the Delmarva Peninsula. The Alumni continues to identify areas of concern and make every effort to revitalize those concern areas into building blocks of future generations.
The National Alumni Association is governed by a Board of Directors which meets 4 times per year to discuss matters of interest to all alumni. The National Alumni Association is supported by staff members within the University's Office of Alumni Affairs who serve as liaisons and who work on initiatives to keep alumni connected to the university and engaged with one another.