Envisioning the future of the AAMC

Although this year saw the loss of our beloved alma mater, Mills College, as we knew it, we have an opportunity to maintain, celebrate and grow our community and what Mills has represented to us on a wider scale. We invite you to participate in envisioning what the AAMC can do, be a part of, and has a responsibility to do as an organization moving forward. 

We presented the Mission/Purpose options to our alums and held a comment period for your feedback and recommendations from October 8 to November 4, 2022.

Below are the results of the comment period.

Results of the Comment Period and Preference Survey

We have created a detailed chart, providing a framework that starts to paint a picture of what the AAMC could look like in each of these scenarios. The details of these options are not mutually exclusive; for example, there could be ways AAMC functions independently while working with Northeastern in other ways. So while the chart is detailed, there is still much work to be done to bring any of these options to fruition. But a crucial question that must be answered is, “What relationship do alums want the AAMC to have with Northeastern?” 

Option 1: The AAMC remains an independent non-profit with no relationship to Northeastern University

Option 2: The AAMC remains an independent nonprofit with a formalized relationship to Northeastern University

Option 3: The AAMC merges with Mills College at Northeastern Office of Alumnae Relations

Preference Survey results showed essentially a tie between Option 1 and Option 2

Themes from the Written Comments to AAMC

  • Keeping Reinhardt Alumnae House (RAH) is very important: Alums who voted for all three options cited keeping RAH as very important. Many alums voted for Option 2 because it included keeping RAH and a presence on campus. Some Option 1 voters said they would still want to keep RAH, if possible.

  • Wait-and-See with Mills College at Northeastern University: The top comment from Option 1 voters was that they don’t trust NU and want to remain independent while taking a wait-and-see stance to see how NU commitments/promises to Mills alums and to Mills’ legacy play out over the next couple of years before deciding to have a formalized relationship. 

  • Preserve Mills History/Name/Campus: Alums stated that they want the AAMC to be instrumental in preserving Mills’ history, the campus, and keeping the Mills name alive.

  • Scholarships: The top activity alums wanted the AAMC to focus on was providing scholarships.

    • Scholarships to the Mills demographic (women, trans, non-binary/first-generation, non-traditional aged students)

    • An equal number of comments suggested these scholarships focus on continuing Mills students post-merger or expanding that to any student who fits the Mills demographic attending the Mills College at Northeastern University campus.

    • Additional comments suggested supporting any current Mills student - even if they transferred to another University - to complete their education successfully post-merger

Frequently Asked Questions from the Comment Period

The AAMC has compiled the questions alums posted during the comment period. We are providing the answers to the questions we can answer definitively.

  • No. RAH was built using alumnae-raised funds as a gift to Mills College in 1948. Currently, RAH is shared by the AAMC and Mills College at Northeastern University’s Office of Alumnae Relations. The building itself was owned by Mills College, and is now owned by Northeastern University. The 2017 Memorandum of Collaboration (MOC) with Mills College guarantees the AAMC’s continued use of the building.

  • Generally, a living presence means that AAMC’s activities would take place on campus rather than elsewhere and that our activities promote and preserve the legacy of Mills College and what a Mills College education stands for. This means the continued use of RAH by the AAMC. The AAMC could also continue some activities in relation to students who attend Mills College at Northeastern University.

Reinhardt Alumnae House (RAH)

AAMC’s Relationship to Mills College at Northeastern University

  • Alumnae Relations, part of the Office of Institutional Advancement, operates under Mills College at Northeastern University, previously Mills College. This office continues to focus on Mills alumnae, with plans to continue Reunion, the publication of the Mills Quarterly, club and branch activities, and more. They will be working with Northeastern Alumni Relations as needed to collaborate on activities and offerings, but Northeastern University Alumni Relations is not directly responsible for Mills College at Northeastern University Alumnae Relations’ work.

  • The Mills Institute is still taking shape and has hired an Executive Director to manage its operations. You can read about the new Mills Institute Executive Director, Nicole M. Guidotti-Hernández, at https://news.northeastern.edu/2022/11/23/mills-institute-executive-director. Currently, the AAMC has not been involved with the Mills Institute planning, but it’s a possibility.

AAMC Endowment, Funding, and Financials

  • In order to remain a 501(c)(3), the AAMC must remain a charitable organization, no matter what direction is taken. Otherwise, the AAMC may not be in control of how the assets are used. The AAMC’s Articles of Incorporation state that the AAMC “promotes the interests of Mills College, maintain among the graduates a spirit of fellowship and service, for scholarships in Mills College and for the benefit of Mills College.” We recognize that Mills College as we knew it no longer exists; however, we remain required to use our assets for a charitable purpose as closely aligned to the mission and purpose as previously stated as possible.

  • We plan to begin conversations with Mills College at Northeastern to address questions like this.

  • Many questions arose during the comment period regarding financials. Until we have begun negotiations and decided on our mission and purpose, we do not have exact answers.

    Some basic financial info: The AAMC has approximately $2,000,000 in assets. Those assets were donated to us for the purposes articulated in the AAMC’s Articles of Incorporation and can only be used for those purposes. If that money were to be endowed (or quasi-endowed, meaning the board designates the money to be treated as an endowment) and the AAMC only spent 4% each year, the AAMC would have approximately $80,000/year for scholarships and operations without spending the corpus (the endowment itself). This assumes the AAMC remains a 501(c)(3) charitable organization and that the assets are used for charitable purposes.

Legal

  • The AAMC has hired a law firm, Mill Law Center, to help rewrite the bylaws when we finalize our mission and purpose. This is unrelated to the previous lawsuit, and it is unrelated to any conversations with Mills College at Northeastern.

  • AAMC leadership is currently scheduling meetings with the administrators of Mills College at Northeastern University to present the unifying desires showcased by alumnae during the comment period (to keep Reinhardt Alumnae House, to continue to support legacy Mills students financially and otherwise, among other things). These preliminary discussions (not formal negotiations) will inform us of our negotiating position.

Database

  • Mills College at Northeastern University owns the database of Mills alumnae. While the AAMC originally gathered all the names and contact information (on index cards!) after the AAMC’s incorporation in the 1920s, over the years Mills College worked with the AAMC on a comprehensive shared database of contact and donor information.

    With the 2017 Memorandum of Collaboration (MOC), the AAMC and Mills College agreed “Records of individual alumnae—including paper files, computer files, and archived materials containing contact, biographic, giving, and other information—are assets of the College and the College will provide the necessary resources to preserve them.” Also in the 2017 MOC, Mills College agreed to allow the AAMC continued access to sending emails to alumnae through the College’s system. For the foreseeable future, the AAMC is able to send emails and mailings to these lists, and currently still does (one email per month, postal mailings paid for by the AAMC).

  • Starting in 2021, the AAMC created its own database to communicate more regularly, independently of the College. This database currently has about 5300 contacts. The database is called Giveffect, it is a CRM with strong fundraising and communications tools. Approximately 12,000 alumnae were contacted by Mills College at Northeastern University asking the alumnae to opt in to the AAMC database. Approximately 1,100 alumnae responded and 98% agreed to release their information. We expect to get that data by the end of the year. Alumnae can add themselves to the AAMC’s independent database at any time by visiting https://www.aamc-mills.org/update-contact-info.

Watch the October 27th Open Forum

Open Forum Zoom Sessions

In these 90-minute Open Forum Zoom sessions, the Board of Governors did a brief introduction and explanation of the options and then opened the floor for comments. Each participant raise their hand and had up to 3 minutes to share their thoughts.

Watch the Saturday, October 29th Open Forum