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Alumni House
Your home on campus
Alumni House
5555 South Woodlawn Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60637Phone: 800/955-0065 or 773/702-2150
Fax: 773/702-2166
A Brief History
The first meeting of the University of Chicago Alumni Association was
held on February 22, 1892, less than six months after the new University
opened its doors. The association was established by graduates of the
Old University of Chicago (fewer than 300 in number) whose degrees had
been recognized by the new University.
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The purpose of the organization was originally stated as “the promotion of the social, educational, and general literary interest of its members and their Alma Mater.” In 1907, the purpose was redefined: “To advance the interests, influence, and efficiency of the University…to promote acquaintance among the graduates, and to strengthen the connection between alumni and their Alma Mater…” The current mission statement reads:
The University of Chicago Alumni Association connects alumni with the University in a life-long interactive relationship, giving them access to all of the privileges of membership in a great intellectual community and assuring the institution’s continued strength through their ongoing support and advocacy.
Starting with fewer than 300 members in 1892, the association today is made up of more than 133,000 alumni. Membership is free for life.
Although the Alumni Association was founded with the University, it never had a permanent home on campus. From 1979-97 the association was housed in Frank Lloyd Wright’s Robie House, where thousands of alumni and friends visited. However, in 1997, the association moved out so that the house could be restored and eventually turned into a house-museum. For the next seven years, the association offices were housed in the Merriam Center on the south side of the Midway Plaisance while the Alumni Board of Governors worked with the University to create a facility that could be dedicated to alumni staff and activities close to the heart of campus.
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On October 28, 2003 the University opened the doors to its new Alumni House in the former McCormick Theological Seminary building at 56th Street and Woodlawn Avenue.
The building, an English Tudor-style limestone structure, was designed and built in 1922 for Phi Kappa Psi fraternity by Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw. Several months of renovation transformed the building into a welcoming center for alumni visiting campus.
A Grand Opening celebration was held for alumni and friends on the first night of Alumni Weekend, Thursday, June 3, 2004, 5:00-7:00 p.m. Alumni toured the house, met some of the Alumni Board members most responsible for its establishment and renovation, and toasted the first permanent alumni home on campus. The event was free and open to all, and all attendees received a commemorative gift.
Amenities
Alumni House has been designed to welcome alumni and house the staff who work to provide benefits and programs for the University’s extended community. On the first floor of Alumni House is the Klowden Family Library, an open, 900-square-foot room, lined with bookshelves to house a growing collection of alumni and faculty publications, University memorabilia, yearbooks, and College portrait directories (“pic books”). We are eager to have contributions of books by and about University alumni and faculty our growing collection. To contribute to the library, please send your book with a note indicating that it's for the Alumni House Library to: Alumni House Library, University of Chicago, 5555 S. Woodlawn Avenue, Chicago 60637.
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A large conference room is available for alumni meetings, and comfortable chairs, daily newspapers, and fresh coffee make this a place to relax and meet other alumni and students.
The Alumni Association staff has offices on the second floor and the garden level is home to the Telefund’s student callers. UC Tech, the University’s technology transfer group, is currently located on the third floor.