Four Years and Counting

Written by Doug Goodnough

Four years. A lot can happen during that time. It certainly has for me.

About this time in 2022, I was returning to Hillsdale College, not as an alumnus or a guest, but as an employee. It was a surreal experience.

The first few months were a blur as I was acclimating myself to campus, my new role in the Alumni Office, and all the new people I met along the way.

During that time, I had the honor of helping Colleen McGinness, ’04, while she built the alumni team into an engagement and outreach powerhouse. We were able to maintain the excellence of our events like the Alumni National Tour and develop new ones like White & Blue Weekend, which is now the marquee event of the summer. But there was more. We restarted alumni chapters around the country, created occupational alumni affinity groups and class ambassadors, and launched an online alumni directory.

The role Colleen created for me allowed me to do what I absolutely love to do most: tell stories. And I’ve taken full advantage of that opportunity, as hopefully you have noticed. We have now featured well over 100 alumni profiles in communications such as the White & Blue e-newsletter (which includes this blog), Arete (our athletic magazine), and various athletic e-newsletters, not to mention social media.

Another way of storytelling is the White & Blue Alumni Podcast, which Colleen and I continue to host. We’re almost two years in and are having a ball getting to know interesting alumni from all over the spectrum. We’re having way too much fun with it to consider it part of our jobs.

Fast forward four years. Much like my four years as a student, I feel like a cycle has completed, and change is on the way. However, this time, change has come in the form of Alumni Office leadership.

After more than six years of being the College’s champion for alumni, Colleen has moved into a new role at Hillsdale. It’s one that she has been doing all along, but now she has the opportunity to do what she does best full time. In her new role as Executive Director of Alumni Advancement, she can focus her time and talents exclusively on meeting with alumni on a more personal level. Fear not, she will still be around for most of our events and remains a vital part of the alumni “team.” But now she can focus on building relationships with those who love the College.

The great news is that Colleen had someone ready, willing, and more than able to step in as Executive Director of Alumni Relations. Dr. David Stanton, ’98, who joined our team a year ago after we got to know him as a member of the Alumni Association Board, assumes the reins of the Alumni Office. He’s a Navy guy, so he’s already assumed a leadership role that would make Charles Gridley proud. The College—and our alumni—are truly fortunate to have both David and Colleen leading these efforts.

Heading into Year 5 of my role at the College, I am excited to see this new team in action. There are more events to attend, more stories to tell, and I get to do this at Hillsdale College.

What could be better than that?

Doug Goodnough, '90, is Hillsdale’s senior director of Alumni Marketing. He enjoys connecting with fellow alumni in new and wonderful ways.

Published in March 2026

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