IUAA brings social network to campus

In the spirit of connecting past and present Hoosiers, the IU Alumni Association  launched a new social networking site called the Spirit of IU.

“Our goal was to create a forum that allows people to express their own view of IU as well as recognize and reward people for showing their IU spirit,” JT. Forbes, executive director of the IUAA, said.

“With over 500,000 living alums, we wanted to give Hoosiers a chance to connect with each other and have fun.”

The site, which can be accessed at spirit.iu.edu, allows members to upload pictures, join communities, post statuses and comment on other users’ submissions.

Joining communities, uploading pictures and referring other people earn members activity points, which can later be redeemed for prizes, such as a free one-year membership in the IUAA or 15 percent off merchandise in the IUAA store.

Every few months, the Spirit of IU will run a contest as a chance for Hoosiers to show off their school spirit.

The first contest, “Show Your IU Style,” began July 18 and will run until Sept. 19. Contestants are asked to show off their IU-inspired fashion and upload photos to the site, where other members will vote for 10 finalists.

The contest is run by IU alumna Jessica Quirk, a 2005 apparel merchandising graduate and fashion blogger.

Quirk’s blog, “What I Wore,” began in 2007 and features almost every outfit she has worn in the past four years.

“What I Wore” has been featured in publications and outlets such as Marie Claire, Glamour, CNN and The Wall Street Journal and was published as a book July 5.

The 10 finalists will each receive IU apparel and a copy of Quirk’s book.

“We created these contests to feature notable alumni and their accomplishments to other Hoosiers,” said Rebecca Salerno, director of creative services at IU.

 “For other contests, we’re trying to find connections between famous alumni and how their stories fit into IU’s.”

The Spirit of IU gets its namesake from an old IU tradition, the Freshman Induction Ceremony.

During the first induction ceremony in 1933, the speaker was a female student dressed in a white robe named “the Spirit of Indiana,” representing IU’s search for truth and knowledge.

“A lot of that speech still holds true for students today as it did back then,” said Sarah Anderson, IUAA’s manager of interactive media.

 “The pursuit of diversity and intellectual development remains very modern, real and accurate for IU today, and we want to carry on that tradition.”