How many high school class reunions are hosted in a year? (in the U.S.)

Several online sources give the number of high school class reunions
in the United States each year as 150,000. The research firms Reunion
Reseach and American Demographics agree upon this number, as noted in
articles quoted below.

"Approximately 150,000 class reunions are hosted each year, according
to Reunion Research, a reunion company located in Auberry, Calif.

About 27 million attend a class reunion annually. 

The average size of a reunion is 180 people." 

High School for Health Professions: Reunion Tips
http://www.hshp.org/Reunion/Reunion_Tips.htm

"According to American Demographics, there are more than 150,000 class
reunions each year in the US."

EXN (Discovery Channel Canada)
http://www.exn.ca/Stories/1999/01/07/03.asp

"Reunions By the Numbers 

   Number of reunions per year in the United States: 
   Family: 200,000 
   School: 150,000 
   Military: 6,000 
    
   Average attendance per reunion: 
   Family: 40 
   School: 180 
   Military: 100 
    
   Number of attendees per year: 
   Family: 8 million 
   School: 27 million 
   Military: 600,000" 
    
Archived copy of article from the Salt Lake Tribune
http://web.archive.org/web/20020806175214/http://www.sltrib.com/2002/jun/06242002/monday/747876.htm

"Classfinders is a unique alumni search service designed to find
missing classmates for the more then [sic] 150,000 high school class
reunions held each year throughout the US."

Affiliates Directory
http://www.affiliatesdirectory.com/directory/relationships/index.shtml

"It is estimated that there are more than 150,000 class reunions each
year."

GoBizAmerica
http://www.gobizamerica.com/news/news_details.asp?ID=281

I hope this information is useful. If anything is unclear, or if a
link does not function, please request clarification; I'll gladly
offer further assistance before you rate my answer.

Best regards,
pinkfreud

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Request for Answer Clarification by jancm-ga on 24 Oct 2003 15:32 PDT

Hi Pinkfreud,

Thank you very much for your in-depth look into this.

I have a couple of questions:
* the 150,000 figure is indicated in all sources below except one (and
that one is an alumni service), as "Class" reunions, and not
specificaly high school. Did you come across another source that
states the 150,000 is high school reunions?

* what is the American Demographics? is this the online magazine?

Thanks, I really appreciate this.

---

Clarification of Answer by pinkfreud-ga on 24 Oct 2003 18:25 PDT

I believe the figure of 150,000 which is frequently cited on the Web
refers to high school reunions, but, in two hours of searching, this
was the only source I found which specifically states this:

"Classfinders is a unique alumni search service designed to find
missing classmates for the more then [sic] 150,000 high school class
reunions held each year throughout the US."
 
Affiliates Directory 
http://www.affiliatesdirectory.com/directory/relationships/index.shtml

Here is an excerpt from an article that appeared in the Sun-Sentinel
(a newspaper published in south Florida) about a business called
Reunited, Inc., which specializes in high school reunions. The 150,000
figure appears within that article, followed by references to high
school class reunions:

"Jonathan and Beth Miller graduated from high school more than 15
years ago, but they still spend every year focusing on school. Their
business, Reunited Inc., is wrapping up its 9th season of planning
high school reunions... Every year, some 27 million Americans gathers
to reconnect with their classmates at more than 150,000 reunions,
according to Reunion Research in San Francisco... About 30 percent of
a high school class can be expected to attend its reunion, according
to the National Association of Reunion Managers."

Reunion.net, quoted from Sun-Sentinel: Business capitalizes on
popularity of reunions
http://207.21.192.211/reunited/sunsentinel_article.htm

Regarding "American Demographics," as referred to in the EXN article,
I assume that this is American Demographics magazine, which has
published articles about reunions in 1996 and again in 2002. I've
found an archived copy of the 1996 article, but I have not been able
to locate a free online source for the 2002 article, which seems to
have been primarily on the subject of family reunions:

"Americans currently hold an estimated 150,000 class reunions every
year, according to Reunion Research in San Francisco, and the number
is not expected to drop off any time soon. In the mid-1960s, baby
boomers began graduating from high school. Their numbers pushed up the
total size of America's senior classes from 1.9 million in 1963 to
nearly 3 million in 1971. The graduating classes of 1972 to 1981 each
contained more than 3 million students. These large classes are, or
soon will be, celebrating 20-, 25-, and 30-year reunions. Many baby
boomers attend college reunions, too."

Archived copy, "The Reunion Market," April 1996, American Demographics
http://web.archive.org/web/20010306050310/http://www.marketingtools.com/Publications/AD/96_AD/9604_AD/9604AF02.htm

Note that the 1996 American Demographics article linked above refers
to "150,000 class reunions," and later says "Many baby boomers attend
college reunions, too." I take this an indication that the 150,000
does not include college reunions (which, at least in my part of the
country, are more commonly placed under the category "Homecoming
Reunions.") It looks as if American Demographics derived its data from
Reunion Research, so I was in error when, in my answer, I implied that
the figure of 150,000 had been reported in two separate studies.

This was all I could find on the American Demographics article
published in 2002, which may or may not have mentioned high school
reunions:

"A 2002 study in American Demographics Magazine found that as many as
six in 10 Americans attended family reunions the previous year. That's
180 million people, according to Basirico, who spoke by phone from his
home in North Carolina."

Eldercare Directory
http://eldercare.uniontrib.com/news/marsha/marsha_reunions.cfm

Here you'll find the website for American Demographics:

American Demographics
http://www.demographics.com/

I have just noticed that, in the first sentence of my answer, I
misspelled the word "Research" as "Reseach." This is a very
embarrassing typo, considering that I am a Researcher by profession.
Or perhaps a "Reseacher." I beseech you to excuse my error. ;-)

~pinkfreud

Hi Pinkfreud,

This is excellent.  Thank you so much for being so detailed with your
answer.  I really appreciate it.  This is such an interesting topic
and seems to be/becoming "the" thing to do or participate in.

Thank you again! Have a great day!

--jancm

Thank you very much for the five-star rating and the generous tip!

~pinkfreud