At Commencement, the newest Costello alumni are welcomed into the Costello alumni community—comprising 40,000 members and counting. Working on their behalf, the Costello College of Business Alumni Chapter offers engaging programs and networking opportunities to foster meaningful connections among students, alumni, faculty, and community partners. Ahead of the 2025-2026 academic year, the alumni chapter has restructured to increase student engagement and mentorship.
Andrew Sanchez, MBA ‘18, chairs the outreach committee of the alumni chapter. His role has now shifted to focus more on engaging industry events like happy hours. “We’re putting our faces and names in front of the students based off the industries they’re working in,” he says. Working with Sanchez are board members who are directly connected to the areas they are assigned to. Manya Vij, BS Finance ‘21, is running many of the finance events and is leading an industry group within the alumni chapter that more directly supports alumni working in the finance industry.
Under the leadership of Kevin Connor, MBA ‘22, Sanchez, Vij, and their fellow board members are working diligently to remove any existing siloes so that students can get the full benefits of engaging with them. As a past president of the Montano Student Investment Fund, Vij had the idea to create an alumni board to directly support the students working on it.
At first, Vij became a friend of the Costello Alumni Chapter Board, an unelected position where he could be involved at his own pace. After a little while, the Costello alumni and advancement team approached him again with the opportunity to spearhead the new finance industry group. He jumped at the chance and was elected as a director-at-large. “The idea was really to have a group of alumni, individuals who have gone through the same classes, have gone through the same process and whatnot as many of the current students, and to really help them pave a way for themselves,” he says. In his role on the chapter board, Vij is focused on creating a cohesive community where students and alumni are encouraged to interact and students can gain an understanding of what it takes to make it in the industry.
Working with Costello College of Business staff and alumni and their business connections, Vij made sure that they attracted students to the Alumni in Finance Industry Happy Hour held on Thursday, May 1 at Yard House in Tysons Galleria, resulting in approximately 60 attendees. “Dr. Horstmeyer sent out an email blast and was advertising to all of his classes as well,” says Vij. “And then we had a bunch of other professors, finance professors and otherwise, market the event.”
Prior to the Alumni in Finance Industry Happy Hour, the Alumni Association organized a New York City alumni happy hour to coincide with the Costello Fellows on Wall Street event that occurred in April. Through these and other events, the Costello Alumni Chapter is excited to forge connections with more campus groups and bridge the gap with students. Together, they are building a legacy of what it means to be a Costello alumnus.