News
3rd Annual Networking Series Bring Alumni from Northern New England Independent Schools Together
On Wednesday, April 3 and Thursday, April 4, Vermont Academy alumni joined fellow northern New England independent school alumni from eight additional schools for keynote presentations and breakout discussions in Boston and New York City. These events were attended by approximately 75 alumni in both cities.
Now in its third year, this series of events was developed to bring together alumni from various schools who shared similar experiences as students at northern New England independent schools, while also providing valuable networking opportunities. With eight other schools participating, our alumni had the opportunity to meet peers from Vermont Academy while also benefiting from the opportunity to network with additional alumni from Cardigan Mountain School, Dublin School, Holderness School, Kimball Union Academy, Pinkerton Academy, Proctor Academy, The Putney School, and The White Mountain School.
In Boston, Holderness School parent and trustee Bob Cuhna, founder of Massachusetts Defender, was the keynote speaker. Bob shared the five lessons he learned from horrible bosses. These lessons were:
- There are no stupid questions, but there are lazy questions.
- Learn how to tell the short story.
- Be kind to administrative assistants because they hold all the keys. (...and because you should anyway.)
- Don't bring problems to your boss without also bringing solutions.
- Break bread with clients/colleagues. It's far more effective than a call or coffee. If you find yourself with nothing to do, take someone to lunch.
In New York, we were thrilled to hear from fellow Wildcat Rob Outtrim ’03 about his path to a career in finance and some of the important career lessons he has learned over time.
- Set realistic expectations.
- Give a little bit extra.
- Do what you say you’ll do.
- Knowledge is plentiful; what wisdom can you bring?
Following each keynote speaker, attendees broke into industry-specific discussion groups to dig further into the key points shared by each speaker. Special thanks to Dan Weinger ’02 for leading a breakout discussion for Boston attendees interested in the law.
We are excitedly anticipating the 2025 events and hope to see even more VA alumni in attendance next year.
Check out photos from both events in the Flickr album.
Vermont Academy is a coed college preparatory boarding and day school in southern Vermont, serving grades 9-12 plus a postgraduate year.
