UCLA Extension rang in the holidays on Dec. 6 with an alumni happy hour celebration at the Luskin Conference Center in Westwood.

The event brought together current and former students from a wide range of UCLA Extension academic programs. Director of Alumni Relations Nisha Chauhan-McGrath said the goal of the happy hour was to provide space for alumni to build networks and stay connected with the UCLA Extension community.

"The alumni relations program at UCLA Extension is only a year old, so it's still a work in progress," Chauhan-McGrath said. "That gives us a unique opportunity to tailor our programming to what our alumni tell us would be most valuable for them."

UCLA Extension's alumni relations department was developed in late 2023 as part of a broader institutional focus on student outreach and engagement. The happy hour followed alumni networking events earlier this year in downtown Los Angeles and in Paris.

Dean of UCLA Extension and Continuing Education Eric Bullard said in remarks during the event that he had been struck by stories of alumni success in Los Angeles and around the globe.

"Your stories are the things that are most powerful in terms of impact," Bullard said, adding that networking events like the one in Westwood were part of UCLA Extension's mission to build community. "We're creating networks to ensure that our students and alumni are part of the campus and connected with one another."

Attendees were treated to food, drinks and holiday music while they mingled in the conference center's fireside courtyard. Vanessa Zhang, who earned an accounting certificate in 2015 and traveled two hours from Ontario, California to attend the event, said she enjoyed the opportunity to learn about what her former classmates had been up to since graduation.

"It's great to meet new people and see if I can connect with some old friends," Zhang said.

Nera Uzunyan, an international student from Armenia who completed her data science certificate with a concentration in cybersecurity, echoed the sentiment.

"It's a very good opportunity to reconnect and to see what other alumni are doing," Uzunyan said. "But also it's just a way to spend a good time."

After the event, Chauhan-McGrath said the alumni relations department would continue to find new ways of connecting with former students and helping certificate graduates leverage the professional and personal networks available to them as UCLA alumni.

"I feel very lucky that my job means that I get to connect with fellow Bruins," Chauhan-McGrath said.