"We, the members of the University School of Milwaukee community, agree to relate to each other and the school with respect, trust, honesty, fairness, and kindness."

Just a few simple words, but with such profound implications. As extended members of the USM community, we alumni share a commitment to these values. Like many of you, I’ve returned to them time and time again throughout my life—personally, professionally, and now as the parent of future USM alums myself. And in these most interesting of times that we’re living through, I can’t help but reflect on how the timeless values of the Common Trust are as relevant—and as necessary—as ever.

I’m honored to serve as the Alumni Association president, and to work alongside the rest of the USM community to help protect and advance these foundational values, and the foundation of an academically robust and rigorous education that they undergird, for future generations.

When I returned home to Milwaukee a few years ago, my wife and I visited USM with our children to share with them a place that had been so formative in their father’s life. What we found—and what I’m sure you’ll find if you drop in yourself—is a warm, diverse, and welcoming school community, one that balances a healthy respect for tradition, with the imperatives of growth, development, and change that mark any journey of lifelong learning. From Tower Projects to the school’s deepening commitment to diversity and inclusion work, we found a school that remains committed to the rigorous pursuit of excellence—academically, athletically, and in realizing the full and inherent potential of every student.

It’s an exciting time to be a part of the USM community: the Alumni Association has expanded its board representation to include members from California, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Missouri; we are connecting more alumni than ever to students through USM Connect volunteer opportunities; and the school is in the beginning stages of a new strategic design process. Through these initiatives and more, we are reaching and engaging more alumni than ever.

I invite you to stay engaged with the school—to share of your time, talents, and treasure with the students who now sit in the classrooms and play on the athletic fields that you may have once traversed yourself. There are so many ways to be involved: mentoring individual students, sharing with student groups, contributing to the USM Fund, or just coming out to campus for performances and athletic contests, Reunions and Homecomings.

And, I’m excited about finding new ways for all of our alumni community to stay engaged with each other, to keep alive the relationships that the first part of the Common Trust speaks of—blending the traditions of the past, with some new ways of interacting that we’ve perhaps been compelled to pick up over the past few years.

These last few years have perhaps reminded us all about the power, and the importance, of community. Whether you’re in Milwaukee, or around the country or the world, you always have a place in the USM alumni community. I look forward to staying connected, and to strengthening our shared commitment to each other, and to the values of the Common Trust that knit our community together.

Colleston Morgan ’03
President, University School of Milwaukee Alumni Association