“Furman Blood runs deep,” said Alumni Director Tom Triplitt. A Furman graduate himself, Triplitt stressed the importance of keeping Furman alumni involved with the university after they receive their degree.

Nearly 20% of Furman’s faculty and staff are Furman graduates, according to Raenae Nay of the Furman Development Office.

“This is a healthy mix,” says Triplitt. “It brings Furman perspective.” Hiring Furman graduates as employees creates a unique work environment. Triplitt said graduates use their knowledge base from their Furman experience to improve the institution as a whole. He added that “Furman is a great place to work,” as the university’s worker retention rate shows.

Each year, the Furman Office of Career Services performs a Graduate Survey to determine what the most recent Furman alumni are doing post-graduation. In the past five years, between 40-60% of Furman graduates are employed within six months of graduation. In the same six months, between 40-50% of graduates enroll in graduate or professional school.

A large percentage of current students at Furman are considered “legacies.” The designation signifies that the student’s parent, grandparent, or sibling attended Furman. Starting next year, a $10,000 alumni scholarship will be offered to these students, encouraging Furman alums to keep the “Furman blood” in their families. Triplitt, whose daughter graduated from Furman in 1998, says this relationship “makes for a special bond between parent and child.”

The rumor that one in four Furman grads marry another Furman grad turns out to be true. “In all honesty that number might be a bit high,” Triplitt said, “but it’s about right.”

For Homecoming 2011, the Alumni Office has helped organize over 25 events for Furman alumni. Reunions for this year go as far back as the Class of 1941 and as recently as the Class of 2006. Each year, the Alumni Office hosts a luncheon for returning Furman graduates at the Cherrydale alumni house, former residence of the first president of the university.