Sara Roth
Sara Roth knows a lot about alumni associations. Not only is she the founder of the Low Country Mountaineers, a formal WVU Alumni Association chapter located in Charleston, S.C., but her dedication also landed her a job at the alumni office at The Citadel.
Sara works as the assistant director of administration for The Citadel Alumni Association. Her job gives her the opportunity to work with alumni board members, officers who run for election, alumni groups and other graduates.
Being involved with two alumni groups is always giving her new ideas. “I’ve seen things that they’ve done and thought it would be a good idea to try for our alumni group,” Sara says.
Sara came to WVU in 1993 after she had visited the campus and, like most Mountaineers, fell in love. She took advantage of everything WVU had to offer, including becoming a member of the WVU Marching Band where she enjoyed traveling to bowl games. In her free time, she would join her friends in the Mountainlair or visit Coopers Rock.
Sara received her bachelor’s of science in business in 1997 and master’s degree in 2000. After visiting her sister often in South Carolina, she fell in love with the area and moved there in 2005.
Even though she was almost 600 miles away from her alma mater, she still carried the Mountaineer spirit with her. She found WVU alumni and fans in the area, and soon started planning informal game watches and using MySpace and Facebook to post information. She was able to work with the WVU Alumni Association to reach out to alumni and friends in the area, and the Low Country Mountaineers Chapter was born.
The chapter has only been around for about four years, but members have worked hard to make sure the Mountaineer footprint can be found throughout the Charleston area. In addition to providing opportunities for social gatherings, the chapter has been busy collecting toys and organizing food drives for the local community. Additionally, members have been fund raising for scholarships to help local students attend WVU.
It’s important for Sara to stay involved with her alma mater. “It’s a good way to give back to the school where you spent so many years,” says Sara. “Without giving back, alumni groups wouldn’t be successful at growing, and without alumni help, schools wouldn’t be successful at gaining new students.”
“Being a member of the WVU Alumni Association gives me a sense of pride and being proud of where I went to school,” Sara explains. “I want to show it off, tell people about it and be involved.”
Sara, the recipient of the 2008 Margaret Buchanan Young Alumni award, also credits her involvement in alumni activities as one of the reasons she landed her job in the alumni office of The Citadel. “The executive director told me that, although all of the candidates were extremely qualified, my experience in starting a successful chapter and my active involvement in WVU alumni activities put me ahead of the competition. If it weren’t for my connection to the WVU Alumni Association, I wouldn’t have this awesome job!”
Sara will always keep her experience at WVU close to her heart. Looking back, she will forever remember the friends and the memories she made. “My friends now are all the friends I made in college, and they’re the best friends I’ve ever had in life.”
This article was written by WVU senior Krista Froess, a public relations intern at the WVU Alumni Association.