Jacklyn Okunola ’19 (center, pictured with alumni at the Return to Oz dinner) is a marketing major in the School of Business and an editorial intern for Oswego’s alumni publications. On Oct. 13, Okunola - who is the former president of the African Student Organization - attended the Return to Oz V, a reunion for alumni of color. This event takes place every five years for alumni to reconnect with their alma mater and see the changes that have been made to improve the campus. After learning about this event, I became very eager to go! I never knew an event like this existed for alumni of color. I wanted to meet with them and speak on how life was like then for a student of color compared to now. Before the dinner celebration in Hewitt, I had the honor of meeting a few alumni earlier that day. They were in Marano Campus Center, saying hello and giving high-fives to other students of color walking through the building. Their happy and positive vibe brightened the campus for the weekend and made it easier to feel comfortable in their presence. I met three gentlemen who spoke to my two friends and me on how back in their days at Oswego, the Marano Campus Center did not exist. Hewitt Union was where most of the classes were held, and it functioned as the main campus building. They also said that their social functions, such as small get-togethers, took place in the basement of Johnson Hall. My friends and I were interested in their stories, as we could not imagine not having Marano as the main building. We also shared that now get-togethers are often held off campus at a venue or individual houses. However, we mentioned the difficulty some students of color currently face to securely book venues in Oswego. They told us to ensure that we get the venues, we need to come together as one voice so our voice can be heard loud and clear. There is strength in numbers, they agreed. Back in their days, the three gentlemen said the Black Student Union truly brought all the students of color together. It acted as a platform for students of color to vocalize what was important to them, including what issues they needed the school to pay attention to in order to feel comfortable. In that context, it is beautiful to see the growth in the number of clubs for students of color now. At the dinner celebration, the most significant touch to me was the huge picture frame with a collage of images of student memories. This collage, which hung in recently retired executive assistant to the President Howard Gordon’s office for decades, is held dear to the hearts of the alumni of color as they remembered routinely stopping by his office to see it.
I was able to meet more alumni who were all friendly and willing to help meet the needs or concerns for current students at Oswego. The alumni made it evident how important networking is and keeping in touch. Several shared their personal phone numbers and email addresses with students. The night also got a little emotional as we honored Howard Gordon. It was amazing to see how Howard had a positive impact on all the individuals in the room, including me. He showed so much support to the students throughout the years. Toward the end, Rodmon King, the college’s new chief diversity and inclusion officer, gave a speech to let the alumni and current students know that he wants to help meet the needs in order to improve student experiences. Overall, the night was beautiful. I am grateful that I had the opportunity to experience this reunion during my undergrad. I look forward to five years from now, when I will be one of the alumni who returns to Oz to share my experiences and connect with students.
-Jacklyn Okunola ’19