Alumni & Students Family Weekend Picnic 2023

Alumni celebrated the students and parents who attended our annual Family Weekend picnic at the Afro-American Cultural Center. Over 200 people joined 1stGenYale host Yuet-Ming Chu '87, who told the students: “Take advantage of all that a place like Yale has to offer. When I was here it was Gaddis Smith and Jonathan Spence. If you see a famous professor in a coffee shop, say hello and introduce yourself. You are worthy of their time and attention. You belong here among the stars. One of my most poignant memories of Yale was a late-night tea at Naples with Professor Spence -- the thrill of him saying 'join me' will always be a privilege of a lifetime. I hope you have one of those moments while you are here.”

Alums who were present included the New Haven Walking Group: Sam Samdani '84, Jay Wong '17, Kyle Wong '22, J’Healee, and Sophia Cui.

The FGLI Community Initiative, run by Burgwell Howard, provided delicious food and co-hosted the event through support by Jorge Anaya '19 and student ambassadors.

Karin Gosselink, inaugural director of the Office of Educational Opportunity, described how the new office will support FGLI students -- and Timeica E. Bethel-Macaire '11, director of the Afro-Am Center, shared some resources to help students throughout their four years at Yale.