How to Coordinate a Reunion Survey

Coordinating a Class Reunion Lifestyle Questionnaire

In recent years, many reunion committees have discovered that their classmates are interested in hearing about life changes over time.A Class Lifestyle Questionnaire is the tool used by reunion committees to gather and document changes in the class from one reunion to the next.Once the information has been gathered and organized into a report, the committee presents the information to their classmates during the reunion.This can be an interesting and humorous presentation that has grown in popularity over the past few years.

Though each class questionnaire is as individual as the class itself, most consist of 40-70 multiple choice questions on backgrounds, professions, relationships, and lifestyles.Planning a lifestyle questionnaire can be a lot of fun for the reunion committee, but it also involves a great deal of work.To facilitate having a class lifestyle questionnaire at your reunion, the Office of Classes and Reunions suggests the following guidelines:

• In order to allow enough time for information to be compiled, the lifestyle questionnaire must be sent to classmates no later than the January or “winter” reunion mailing.Because of this early deadline, one or two committee members should be assigned in the fall specifically to this project in order to complete it in a timely manner.

• Once the volunteers have been recruited, the next step is for them to create the questionnaire.The Office of Classes and Reunions has many sample questionnaires from past reunions that can be very helpful.Many committees copy the samples and add class specific questions to their questionnaire and drop the inappropriate questions.

• In this age of improved technology, most lifestyle questionnaires are now being done on-line.This has proven to be a much easier and less labor intensive way to go.

• We encourage reunion committees to keep their questionnaires under 80 questions.Too many questions becomes burdensome to both the classmate filling out the questionnaire and the classmate tallying the results.

• Committee members should work in advance to determine what they are going to do with the data received for the survey.Waiting until the last minute brings on unnecessary panic, pain, and suffering as the reunion approaches.

• In past years, classes have chosen an outgoing and personable member of the class to facilitate the discussion of the questionnaire results.Some classes have used handouts, slides, and overhead projectors to present the questionnaire results to classmates.

• The Office of Classes and Reunions will find a space on campus where the results can be presented. Please let your HAA liaison know in advance that space is needed.