What is a Group?Groups are informal associations you can form online with other alumni similar to those found on Facebook or MySpace. There are some groups we have created and users can create groups as well. Groups can be created for almost any combination of criteria. For example, you could start a group for Waukegan Alumni who graduated in the 80’s, or Shimer grads living in California.
How do I Search and Explore Groups?1. There are two ways to get to Groups.
- Go to the Groups box found on the right of the front page of the alumni website. You must be logged in to see this feature.
- Or, select My Profile, then click the Groups tab.visual
2. There are three things you will find as options under Groups.
- My Groups - The default tab, this contains a listing of the Groups you belong to. This is viewable by other members on your profile, except for Secret Groups which are only viewable by the member themselves.
- Suggested Groups – The list of Suggested Groups for a member, viewable only by the owning member, with any associated Groups tags being clickable links.
- Search – Use the search option to find Groups.
3. Click on the name of a Group to get more information. Click on the name of a Member to view the Member’s profile.
How do I Create a Group?
Note: A small number of groups have been created by Shimer. Alumni are put into these groups based off of answers in their profiles, specifically the campus(es) they attended and program(s) they participated in while at Shimer. You can edit your profile to include this information by going to the My Account link.
1. Click
Create a group to add a new group based on your interests. The member who creates a group will be the Group Owner by default.
Group Owners can add additional owners from the members who join the
group.
2. Enter Group information.
- Group Name
- Description
- Photo (Optional)
- Tags (keywords or descriptors that help others find the group)
- Privacy Type
3. Click Finish to create the group.
4. Don't forget, member-created groups start with no members. Others will be able to see and join the
group in their
Suggested Groups if they have data that matches the tags
associated with the group or they may search for those tags. You can also invite others to your group (see below).
Note: This document will go into more detail on how to create and manage a group
.
How to I Leave or Join a Group?Shimer-created Groups - Those set up originally by Shimer (based on campuses and programs) then you cannot join from the groups page.
- Alumni are put into these groups based off of answers in their
profiles, specifically the campus(es) they attended and program(s) they
participated in while at Shimer. You can edit your profile to include
this information by going to the My Account link.
- You may leave these groups at any time by clicking Leave Group on the group's page.
Other Groups - Those created by other alumni.
- Search of groups using the Suggest Groups tab or Search function (see above).
- Once you are viewing the Group information you can click Join Group.
- You can also leave any of these groups at any time by clicking Leave Group.
How do I use the Other Functions of the Group?Subscribe/Unsubsribe to E-mails- These are e-mails sent to group members by the group owner.
- Click Subscribe to Emails to receive group emails.
- Click Unsubcribe from Emails to discontinue receiving group emails.
Invite Friends- Enter a friend’s name and email address in the pre-populated form to send an invitation to join the group.
Group Posts- Quick and easy way to post text, links, and embeds for sharing with the Group. Allows for comments so that members can talk about a particular post in a message board format.
Group White Board- Place for Group members to post a simple statement, shout out or whatever to other members of the Group.
Group Member Map- Automatic map of all members of the Group by zip code on a Google Map. Clicking on the map takes the user to a larger display of the Google Map that shows a relative weighting of zip codes containing the least-to-most members.
Note: This document will go into more detail about the various functions of Groups.