International Alumni Association FAQs

UWPIAA
June 9, 2022

Over the past few months, there have been questions about the current situation with the IAA. We hope this will answer some of the questions you may have:

What is the function of the IAA?
The function of the IAA is to foster collaboration, communication, and support among Up with People alumni worldwide and to inspire an active community of difference-makers.

The Association will focus on events, programs, education, professional development, and  entertainment that benefit the overall alumni community. The Association will support the mission of Up with People and may also support affiliate organizations, as determined by the Board of Governors, whose raison d’être is to support our alumni community.

What happened to the IAA last year?
In September 2021, it was discovered that an annual filing required in Arizona had not been made for a number of years and, as a result, the IAA was administratively dissolved in Arizona. This situation needed to be rectified and it has become the primary focus of the current IAA Board.

Part of the process involved creating a new, successor organization to which the assets of the current IAA will be transferred in order for historical and IAA operations to continue.

This new organization has been formed with Articles of Incorporation and documents public in Arizona. The application for tax-exempt status, as an Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3) organization has been submitted, but it will take a number of months for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to review the application.

Why does the IAA need attorneys?
With the previous oversights in the filing of documents with the state of Arizona, the resulting administrative dissolution of the IAA cannot be reversed. This has caused complicated issues that must be resolved. As noted above, this includes but is not limited to the formation of a new Arizona non-profit, the application of the new Arizona non-profit for tax exempt status and the transfer of assets and operations from the IAA to the new organization.

What is the reason there was there no communication for several months?
Without the annual filings happening in Arizona, multiple complex issues were created. As the failure to file the form for a number of years resulted in an irreversible administrative dissolution of the IAA in the state of Arizona. The IAA’s focus was on resolving these numerous and varied issues. This created limitations to the Board’s ability to communicate.

Emails were sent 17 October and 10 December 2021 explaining our situation. If you did not receive them, please contact us at president@uwpiaa.org and we will send them to you

Please visit the “News” section of uwpiaa.org to keep up to date.

We miss being able to freely communicate with our alumni around the globe. The IAA Board is taking all steps necessary to resolve these issues created by the administrative dissolution. The process is a legal process that will take several more months. We are confident that the resolution will be completed satisfactorily after Reunion 2022 is over.

What does the future of the IAA look like?
The future looks bright! Many new alumni programs have been proposed for the future of the IAA. The ideas for these programs have come from alumni feedback and are summarized on our website at uwpiaa.org/upbeat-news/uwpiaa-is-launching-into-a-new-dimension

In the immediate future the existing IAA will operate Reunion 2022 and then work on the asset transfer to the successor organization, which has been formed and is awaiting IRS acknowledgment of its tax-exempt status. The successor organization will operate under the Articles of Incorporation, filed publicly with the Arizona Corporation Commission.

Who is considered to be an alumnus/a?
Individuals who were accepted into the Up with People program and who completed staging/orientation; who have traveled as a cast member or served as staff member of Up with People; who were in any national traveling cast of Sing Out; who were in WorldSmart; or who were on the staff of PACE magazine are considered to be alumni.

We currently total over 22,000 alumni from around the world. We welcome your participation in the Facebook group, facebook.com/groups/UWPIAA, attending Reunion 2022, uwpiaa.org/reunion, meeting with fellow alumni, letting us know your interests, and ask for a bit more patience until we have completed the necessary legal processes.

Where can I see financial information regarding of the IAA?
The financial information of the IAA 2020 is made publicly available on Guidestar.org through the IAA’s annual Form 990 filings. Typically, the financial information included in a Form 990 for a particular fiscal year is finalized and submitted by the 15th day of the fifth month following the close of the tax-exempt organization’s fiscal year. In the case of the IAA, the fiscal year is the calendar year.  For 2021 the IAA was granted an extension to the 15th day of the 11th month.

Why did members of the Board leave? Where’s the diversity?
Over the past months, there have been various reasons that some board members and officers have left their roles; some have shifted into new roles, and three new board members have been added. Every member of the Board is here to move our Association into the future so that we can add more alumni back in these very important roles, with much intention given to re-establishing the diversity we had in place. Our goals are for all alumni to feel included, heard, and recognized by the Board and by the Association. We have been hard at work on behalf of the alumni to be able to host an amazing reunion. Following Reunion 2022, the new legal entity will begin to launch the new programs that we spoke of so excitedly last year and add back that diversity to our volunteer Board.

What does the IAA do for alumni?
Currently, the focus of the IAA is to facilitate the annual reunion and to take all the steps necessary to comply with Arizona law. As soon as it is possible, the IAA successor organization will move us into the “new dimension” mentioned above.

How is Up with People different from the IAA?
Up with People and the IAA are both separate 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations. Each has its own charitable mission, board, and operations.

What’s happening between the IAA and UWP?
The IAA and UWP remain committed to their common purposes and goals and are working together as the current IAA terminates and the successor organization takes over the IAA’s activities.

Should you have further questions, please direct them to president@uwpiaa.org. Thank you!

2 thoughts on “International Alumni Association FAQs”

    • Thanks for asking! We are not actively soliciting gifts while we complete the transition and set up all the necessary accounts (PayPal is not currently an option, but we anticipate that it will be). But if you or someone else wants to support the work of the IAA, we will gratefully accept any donations. Checks may be made payable to UWPIAA and mailed to: UWPIAA,124 Main Street, Unit 89, Gardiner, NY 12525.

      Reply

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