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The great experience she had at Lafayette compels Meg Bennett ’78 to give back in any way she can.
“I helped pick Marquis Scholars. I was in the young alumni chapter-planning group. Then I switched gears and worked on the admissions side as an admissions rep. After a few years of not doing much, I began to help plan events for my local chapter,” she says. “Lafayette holds a dear spot in my heart, so I will always be involved in some way,” she says.
Now treasurer of the Greater Boston Chapter, Bennett also has served on Lafayette Leadership Council and is in her third year as an alumni representative on the Alumni Affairs and Development Committee.
“Our chapter is working hard to try out different kinds of events that are all aimed at finding ways to bring in alumni. We want to help more alumni in our area reconnect with the College,” she says.
Her dedication earned Bennett the William E. Greenip Jr. ’44 Award, presented each fall to an active chapter officer for service “over and above” regular assignments. It honors the memory of William E. Greenip Jr. ’44, former alumni secretary.
Bennett works as a first vice president for Mellon Financial, leading a team of private bankers who handle loans to high-net worth individuals. She was pleased to host a party for outgoing President Arthur J. Rothkopf ’55 in Mellon’s corporate dining room.
“A lot of our alumni wanted to come out and honor him when he came,” she says.
Her job at Mellon is a natural development for Bennett.
“My father was a banker and he would talk about it at the dinner table, so I was familiar with it,” she says. “I majored in biology at Lafayette. The science curriculum was great at developing my analytical skills, but I wound up going to get my MBA [at Babson] when I realized that I wanted something more people-oriented and needed to learn about business. This job is financial, analytical, and also about building relationships, so it is a great fit for me.”
Relationships were an important part of Bennett’s time at Lafayette. She remembers her swimming coach Bill Lawson as the person who kept her connected to the College.
“When I went back, it was Bill I found myself wanting to see,” she says.
Bennett was a resident adviser at Lafayette, a role also about relationships.
“It was great fun,” she says. “Two of my best friends were also resident advisers in the same building. Besides the fun of things like planning parties with those friends, it was good for me to learn at that age about how to deal with conflict between people on floor. It prepared me for my job.”
Those interested in serving a regional alumni chapter should contact Mary Pat Staats, associate director of alumni affairs, at (610) 330-5036.