Alumni Weekend events set for April 17-19

The 2025-26 Alumni Student Hosts are excited to perform their duties with bright smiles and boundless energy during Alumni Weekend, set for April 17-19 at the University of North Georgia's (UNG) Dahlonega Campus and additional Dahlonega spots.

For Cleo Johnson, the weekend's highlight will be engaging with alumni, especially with former cadets. Johnson is deeply involved in his fraternity, the Corps of Cadets, Student Government Association, promoting his business, and of course, his studies. While his job that weekend includes providing golf cart transportation, he's focused on welcoming alumni back to campus.

"My goal, honestly, is to ensure the alumni are having a great time, connecting with other alumni or former classmates," he said. "Honestly, just talking to them and asking a little bit about what has changed since they've been here, things like that."

Johnson is a junior pursuing a degree in management. He said he hopes to gain some wisdom from the folks he engages with that weekend. This is the second year as an Alumni Student Host for the Kennesaw, Georgia, resident.

Junior Caitlyn Petty is from Chatsworth, Georgia. Like Johnson, the experience is about networking.

"Working as an Alumni Student Host for the past year has given me many opportunities to connect with UNG alumni and build meaningful professional relationships," she said. "I especially enjoy the networking aspect of the role and appreciate how supportive alumni are in helping students succeed in their future careers."

She is pursuing a degree in kinesiology with a concentration in exercise science.

Meanwhile, this is the second time Ilissa Roberson, also a junior, will attend the weekend as an Alumni Student Host.

"I am looking forward to meeting new people and making connections with the current people at the university as well as those from the past," the Waycross, Georgia, resident said. "Most of all, hearing their stories about how the university has evolved over the years and all the things to see what the university was like when they were there."

Among the events the Alumni Student Hosts will support is the Military Awards Review at 11 a.m. April 18. Maj. Gen. Richard "Dwayne" Wilson is the adjutant general of the Georgia National Guard and will review the Corps of Cadets as they march in formation on the Gen. William "Lipp" Livsey Drill Field at the Dahlonega Campus. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in criminal justice from what was then North Georgia College.

A full list of events is available on the UNG Alumni Weekend webpage.