English High Has Alumni in All 50 States…But Locating Many of Them Is Easier Said Than Done
EHS is part of a relatively small group of schools able to boast alumni residing in all 50 states.
According to Michael Thomas, ’67, President/CEO of the Alumni Association, and Chair of the 200th Anniversary Committee, “There are over 18,000 alumni ‘out there.’ But we only have contact information for about half. Many have become unconnected. Some forget to update contact information when they relocate. Others ignore correspondence because they think we only want a donation. Still others might like to reconnect but don’t know how or don’t realize they have lost the connection. As we gear up for our 200th Anniversary Gala on October 1 in Boston, we’re redoubling our efforts to reconnect.”
Not surprisingly, nearly 8,000 alumni who are on the rolls still reside in Massachusetts. Only one lives in Alaska and three call Hawaii home. States with the largest number of English alumni are Florida (800), California (300), New Hampshire (226), New York (200), Georgia (156), and Texas (136). Just one grad lives in South Dakota and three are in Wyoming, The West Indies and Bermuda are home to one alum each.
“‘Search-and-rescue’ attempts aren’t easy,” Thomas smiles. The Alumni group is using a multi-pronged approach to try to fill in the graduation roster including a monthly newsletter, news stories, social media, website, search platforms, and expanded word-of-mouth efforts, all in the hope of locating and informing all alumni about the school’s mission.
For most of its 200 years, EHS has catered to Boston’s working class families – often first- and second- generation kids. During the late 19thand much of the 20th century, immigrant families mostly hailed from Italy, Ireland, Russia, Poland and other countries. In the last few decades, most emigrated from Caribbean islands or South America. Today, 98% of EHS’s student body is minority and 36% are English language learners.
