RPI Reunion – Register to Vote

Dear RPI Alumni,

Renew Rensselaer greatly appreciates the support of alumni like you, as well as the support of all who have contributed to our legal fund. We now have an even more important request: We need you to register and vote in the upcoming Rensselaer Alumni Association (RAA) election scheduled for Saturday, September 28th at 4 pm EDT.

PLEASE FOLLOW THESE STEPS:

1. You must register to vote by September 25th. Please REGISTER ONLINE TO VOTE BY CLICKING HERE. You will be prompted to log into your alumni account and select whether you plan to cast your ballot in-person or electronically (virtual attendance).
2. Renew Rensselaer’s founders and colleagues plan to VOTE NO during the meeting on Saturday, September 28th at 4 pm EDT. We will reject the entire slate of candidates, no matter how qualified they may be. This is the only way to assert our right to free and fair elections as members of the RAA. We encourage our supporters to join us and VOTE NO for the following reasons:

• Over the past two years, Renew Rensselaer has made numerous attempts to engage with the RAA Board, encourage it to adopt bylaws in compliance with the RAA’s Charter and New York State regulatory statutes, and hold open elections with competing candidates and viewpoints.
• Instead, the RAA Board has insisted upon holding “elections” where the voting rights of alumni are restricted to merely approving the candidates already selected by the incumbent Board. Despite many qualified candidates having been nominated, the RAA Board has selected just one candidate to “run” for each vacant position.
• In order to restore and uphold alumni rights, Renew Rensselaer, with the support of generous donors, petitioned the New York State Supreme Court in mid-August seeking to enjoin the RAA Board from holding elections until a time when the RAA Bylaws conform to its Charter and NY Not-for-Profit Corporation law, and the membership is allowed to exercise its right to choose its Trustees.
• The Court may enjoin the RAA Board from holding this election, but if it does not, we ask our supporters to voice their call for free and fair elections.

We hope you understand and agree with Renew Rensselaer’s perspective, and that you will join us and VOTE NO. Regardless, we encourage all RPI alumni to register to vote by the deadline of September 25th. Ballots may be cast either in-person or electronically during the meeting, which is scheduled to begin at 4 pm EDT on Saturday, September 28th.

Please forward this email to your own network of RPI alumni and encourage them to register and vote.

Sincerely,

Renew Rensselaer