Email and Out List
Email List
In order to be a more responsive resource to each other and the college, OLA has initiated a confidential list of member’s email addresses. No one is added to the list without prior permission (i.e., the Alumni Office may have your email address, but we won’t use it unless you tell us it’s okay). People on the list will receive infrequent messages on a variety of topics, e.g. announcements of upcoming OLA events, requests for career, research, or Winter Term assistance from students, any significant campus LGBT news flashes, etc. The list is managed in such a way as to preserve confidentiality. (You won’t be able to see other people’s name or email address; they won’t be able to see yours.) Sign up by sending an email to the address below, asking to be added to the email list.
Out List
From time to time students ask for names and contact information of LGBT alumni to request assistance with various topics such as career or employment choices, winter term housing leads or internships, or advice on moving to a particular new city after graduation. OLA’s confidentiality policy states that we cannot share any of the names on our membership list and we think this is an important policy to maintain. But we also believe OLA’s members harbor tremendous resources for students and we’d like to harness as much of that potential as possible. So we now maintain an OLA “out list.” If you sign up, the Alumni Office will be able to pass your name on to members of the Oberlin College community for the purposes described above. (The Alumni Association does not share or sell the names of any alumni to parties outside the College.) Sign up by sending an email to the address below, asking to be added to the out list.
OLA maintains a strict confidentiality policy to protect the privacy of those who need it. Members willing to be resources to students and other alumni are encouraged to be on our “Out List.”
All information related to individual membership and financial contributions to OLA is subject to stringent confidentiality regulations under the Alumni Association Charter, which reads:
Under no circumstance shall alumni lists or data be made available to organizations beyond the Oberlin College community, no matter how worthy the cause . . . . Information is not to be copied or transmitted in any form to other persons or organizations, and is to be destroyed upon completion of the purpose for which it is requested.
In addition, OLA adopts the following special guidelines to ensure maximum confidentiality of all member information:
Membership Lists and Labels
OLA membership data (reports and labels) are available only on request and as needed to the steering committee members, regional coordinator, regional representatives (as deemed appropriate by the regional coordinator and with written guidelines), and Alumni Association staff. Data will be made available to individuals working on OLA projects on an as-needed basis with the consent of both co-chairs and the Alumni Association Executive Director. Under no other circumstances will this data be shared with other groups or individuals, including members of OLA.
Inquiries about whether someone is a member of OLA generally should be answered politely with an explanation that such information is not available. Information may, however, be given out for persons who are on the steering committee, advisory members, ex officio members, regional representatives, OLA members who are self-identified as publicly out, or those who have expressly asked that their names be made available to other Oberlin alumni. General contact information on individual alumni is available from the Alumni Office.
Contact Guidelines
Telephone messages left on behalf of OLA should include only the caller’s name and “Oberlin College Alumni” as an identifier. Mailings must be sent in sealed envelopes. Return addresses may include “OLA,” &ldqut;Oberlin Lambda Alumni,” or the mailer’s personal name and address; the exterior of a mailing will not include the words “lesbian,” “gay,” “bisexual,” “queer,” “transgender,” etc.
Contribution Data
Contributions to OLA are recorded in the college computer for record-keeping and tax purposes, and are identified only by a generic alumni fund name. With the exception of Alumni Association staff and OLA officers, all those with access to alumni and development records will be able to identify OLA dues only as contributions to Oberlin College. If donors are uncomfortable with this level of confidentiality, they may indicate that their donations to OLA are to be anonymous.