At the Maxwell School’s centennial gathering in New York City this past September, I caught up with Cristina Diaz-Mateo ’24 M.P.A. She shared with me that she had traveled to the event from her new post-graduation home in Washington, D.C., to join fellow alumni in celebrating our milestone birthday.

Then, in October, I caught up with longtime Maxwell friend and former master of social science student John Cooper at our centennial celebration on the main campus (see page 10). He excitedly shared that the event had been on his calendar for several weeks; he drove roughly 300 miles, round trip, from his home in Buffalo to join us. I’m always impressed but never surprised by the devotion of our alumni and the lengths they’re willing to travel to engage with us. In addition to New York City and Syracuse, we hosted events celebrating Maxwell’s 100th anniversary in Washington, D.C., Boston, Atlanta, Albany, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Pittsburgh and Delhi, India. As of this writing, another trip is planned for Seoul, South Korea.

Across the miles we met with hundreds of proud Maxwell and Syracuse University alumni and friends who were thrilled to celebrate with us and who, like Cristina and John, had flown, driven and even traveled by train, some logging hundreds of miles or more. Colleague Dan Nelson ’04 M.P.A. shared a particularly impressive example: Our centennial event in India drew alumni and friends from five different states and cities including Mumbai, Bangalore and Pune.

In addition to the centennial gatherings and other events, we marked this milestone year with a digital map to show the vast global impact of our community of some 40,000 alumni. Throughout the last several months, hundreds have participated in the map project by completing a brief online form and sharing with us what they “ever strive” for—that is, what inspires their work. If you haven’t already done so, we encourage you to visit the map and consider adding your name by submitting an ever strive form. While you’re on our website, be sure to visit our events page for upcoming opportunities to engage with us!

The year has been a whirlwind and a joy. As we wrap up our centennial year and embark on 2025, I am uplifted by the countless reflections I’ve heard of Maxwell’s impact on careers and lives, and I am deeply grateful to be part of such an accomplished, connected community.

Jessica Murray
Director of Alumni Relation