Mat-Su College Student Services has again welcomed a new batch of fresh-faced students to our campus. This Spring 2012 orientation had more attendees than any previous Spring event! And I'm proud to say that I think Student Ambassadors have really gotten this event down to a science. While new students might not know this...orientation is designed, planned, and implemented by the Student Ambassador program. And it has gone through some serious renovations in the past few years. But I think we've finally arrived at something that works really well. What do you think?
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| Making preparations for Spring NSO. |
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| lists, lists, lists |
We started our preparations back in November, guided by countless lists to keep us on track. It's one of the biggest events done by the college, and maybe the only one facilitated almost entirely by student workers. This year we conducted tours, set-up rooms, made arrangements with faculty and staff, sent out invitations, designed flyers and other media, and did a whole host of other duties. Then we attend the event and guide groups of 25 students through the three orientation sessions, assisting staff and faculty to provide a fun and engaging first experience at Mat-Su College. This is MY favorite part. And when it's all over, we clean up.
One of the best parts about New Student Orientation (NSO) is how it connects new students to other new students and to the people that make Mat-Su College great. Attendees to NSO get to meet a lot of people and learn things they might not have ever learned by just going to class. For instance, where can you go to get help choosing a major, creating a resume, or finding a career path? If you answer Karen, career services, or student services you're right! And if you attended NSO you would have met Karen yourself.
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| Amy and Karen check-in new students. |
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| Talis Colberg gives the welcome at NSO. |
And if you came to NSO you also would have gotten the wonderful opportunity to meet the head-honcho of Mat-Su College, Dr. Talis Colberg, and his number two in command, Bryan MacLean. Their stories are not to be missed!
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| Delicious cookies being baked in the wake-up call cafe for NSO. |
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| Move over Jeopardy...it's Student Services Presents! |
And once the festivities begin, there's valuable knowledge to be gained. But it's not "open your book to chapter 9" kind of knowledge. At NSO we try to make it fun. There's the gameshow session called Student Services Presents...and the speed-dating-esque Coffee Faculty Chat.
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| The faculty is the one with the bird hat! |
In short, if you have attended NSO, we're glad you did and hope you learned a lot while having a good time. That's our mission in the Student Ambassador program: to connect you to your learning institution and to do it in an engaging way. If you did not go to NSO then you can still connect to Mat-Su College by participating in other Student Ambassador events, or joining a club, or a study group, or by getting to know your professors and helpful college staff. If you have any suggestions on how we can build more effective bridges...please let us know by commenting on our blog or telling Student Services. On behalf of the Student Ambassador crew, have a fabulous semester!
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| Your Student Ambassadors for Spring 2012. |
Lindsey Shelley
