CAAA name change I was disappointed when I read that the Cal Aggie Alumni Association changed its name [fall '97, page 36]. I voted against the proposal when it came up in 1987, and I wish I had the opportunity to do so again. Reporter Susanne Rockwell put the best spin on it she could, but the obvious fact remains that the alumni association board acted against the will of the vast majority of its members. Apparently they did so because other people didn't immediately make the connection between UC Davis and Cal Aggie. They didn't like our name being a little different from other alumni associations. When I was at Davis, I enjoyed being a little different, especially because a little different usually meant a little better. Our football team, our newspaper, our bus system, our radio station and our coffeehouse were all a little different from those at other schools (if other schools had them at all), and all were a little better than those with which I became acquainted. If the alumni board [members] don't like being a little different, they should have gone to UCLA or maybe Fresno State. And apparently the board cares about everyone's opinion about the name except ours. They asked us our opinion, we gave it to them in an overwhelming landslide, then they toss our input casually aside and do what they were going to do anyway. I was a lifetime sustaining member of the Cal Aggie Alumni Association. I do not consider myself a member of the new organization. Patrick Burke '85 via e-mail How frustrating it is to be a graduate from an institution that holds an "interesting" perspective on tradition for education and identification. "There's nothing magic about UC Davis Alumni Association," said Charlie Soderquist in an article in the fall '97 issue. Boy is he right. Nothing magical at all, or exciting or thought provoking. "It at least starts you out at neutral," he continues. More like "neuter." The difficulty of promoting the university stems not from the lack of connecting the Cal Aggie Alumni Association with UC Davis, but from the lack of educating those who don't know of the association. If you are doing your job well promoting the association, outsiders will know who we are and what we represent. George N. March '85 via e-mail Editor's note: The name change issue is not yet resolved. An article on page 36 of the print issue discusses the alumni association board's most recent action.