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Frank Albinder ’80 has so many volunteer titles at Pomona that even the College may have lost count by now. (Just kidding; we would never lose count when it comes to Frank!) Since graduating over 40 years ago, Albinder has given his time, talent and leadership to many areas, including Admissions, alumni chapters, the Alumni Association Board, the Alumni Awards Selection Committee, his reunion committees and, of course, �鶹��ý music and songs. He is also a recipient of the Alumni Distinguished Service Award.

Albinder is a Grammy® Award-winning conductor and singer and began his career as a music professor at Davidson College. He then sang with before moving to Washington, D.C., to conduct the Washington Men's Camerata, from which he recently retired after 25 years. Currently, he directs the Virginia Glee Club at the University of Virginia and the Woodley Ensemble. Albinder is likely Alumni Weekend’s most regular attendee, and he proudly wears his name badge adorned with dozens of humorous ribbons as flair – which he adds to, saves and returns with each year. Why the longstanding dedication? Pomona became his family, says Albinder. Read on to learn what compels his decades-long dedication to the College.

You once said in a previous interview with Pomona that you wouldn't be who you are today without the lessons you learned here, both as a student and an alumnus. What are those lessons, and how have they shaped your life?

When I got to Pomona, as a 17-year-old from the San Fernando Valley, I didn't know much of anything. But there were so many people who were willing to help, mentor, assist in a variety of ways that I found my footing pretty quickly and became very active in campus life. I got to know so many professors on a close basis, which would never have occurred if I'd gone to a big school – people I've kept in touch with since graduating, who influenced my life while I was a student and afterwards. I remember my department chair, William Russell, had me over to lunch before I left for graduate school in Boston. He had gone to Harvard and gave me a list of places I should go and a map of things to see. We corresponded regularly throughout my time in Boston – before email, you know, we actually wrote letters – and after I started teaching 40 years ago.

It's those kinds of relationships that are so unique. In terms of specific lessons, I’d say: being stand-up, stating your mind but being kind to other people, being honest and trying to help. And I think I did that in my time at Pomona, and I've tried to do that in all the years that have come since.

What role has Pomona played in your career path?

I came to Pomona with the intention of majoring in English and going to law school. But I found that I was spending all my time in the music building making music and participating in the choir, the Glee Club, the Blue and White Quartet and several other choral groups. I thought, well…? That's the decision every musician has to make: to choose it as a vocation or as an avocation.

Pomona prepared me well for graduate school in music. I got my dream job teaching at a small liberal arts college when I was 25 years old. I don't think I could have done that without the strong foundation that was laid here by some really caring and excellent professors – not just in the music department, but throughout the College.

Your dedication to and involvement with Pomona over the decades seems immeasurable. What drives your volunteerism and advocacy for the College? 

I think part of it is a fundamental need to be helpful. Plus, my love for the College, because it is like my family, made me want to give back. And so I started early. I became the Pomona alumni chapter chair when I moved to Boston for graduate school, and I've been doing this kind of work for a long time now. I just love all the people I meet.

I feel connected in ways that I haven't in any other part of my life. And it's not the institution; it's the people that make the institution. Pomona sort of became my family. I was an only child from a single parent home and, coming here, all of the sudden, I had all these new friends. And it's been that way for my whole life, really, since my time at Pomona.

You are among the most familiar faces at Alumni Weekend. What brings you back to campus every year?

It’s always exciting when I drive down College Avenue to visit campus. You’re awash in waves of nostalgia and goose bumps and everything about your time here. Obviously, things fade with memory, and the struggles that you might have had as a student lessen over time. I love coming back and especially enjoy talking to current students and finding out what life is like on campus, what they’re doing.

But I love seeing old friends, meeting new people from a variety of classes. I'm lucky that I am able to come every year, and, of course, I like to keep the college song tradition alive. Over the years, no pun intended, the singing of college songs has lessened in importance. They were a real presence back when I was a student because so many people sang in the choir, in the glee club. The pep band, which we don’t have anymore, played them at every event – not just sporting events, but also parties at the Wash, convocations, you name it. People knew the songs. And so our older alumni, among whom I now count myself, enjoy getting together locally and singing them.

Why is giving back to the community important to you?

I'm single and don't have children, and Pomona is very important to me. My main reason for giving back is that I want students who come here in the future to have a wonderful experience like I did. I think that Pomona provides a unique opportunity and benefits to people who want to go to a small school. The vast majority of American college students go to big universities. Only 2% get degrees at small liberal arts colleges. The Pomona experience is limited because the school can't grow to enormous proportions. And that's just one thing that makes it special.

So in giving both of time and treasure, I feel like I'm helping future generations to go here and to experience some of the things that I experienced that made it so special to me.

And they're going to give me a because I'm retiring. I'm retiring from one of my jobs later this year, and the income I get from my Pomona Plan investment will replace my lost work income while eventually giving the College a gift that I would have made to them in my will anyway. I am grateful that the plan exists, and I would really recommend taking a look at it if it's something that might work for you.

What do you believe Pomona contributes to the world?

I always thought that one of the most valuable skills I learned at Pomona was critical thinking. I learned to be open, to discuss all things with all people. I think Pomona, by teaching foundational skills on how to analyze the world today – which is so much more complicated than it was 40 years ago – is creating future generations who give back. We have people who work on small scales and large scales to contribute to society, and I think that's one of the most valuable impacts that Pomona alumni make as they move out into the real world outside of Claremont.

Learn more about Pomona’s choral program and current college songs catalog online. For information on Alumni Weekend and Reunion Celebrations visit the website.