Be an ambassador

Wrapped in green neckties and blue blazers, student ambassadors represent the student body in the presence of visiting speakers, educators and prospective students. These PSU representatives are planning to expand their ranks.

Ambassadors-who receive student stipends for their work-lead campus tours, act as liaisons between students, faculty and administrators, perform volunteer community work and serve as hosts at official functions and VIP events.

In addition to relocating its headquarters from a tiny cube in the Dean of Students office to the former TriMet office in the Urban Center, ambassadors will also hire 10 to 15 new students this year, said J.R. Tarabocchia, coordinator of Commencement and Student Affairs Outreach.

The group will be looking for faculty and staff to start nominating students soon.

‘We want students who are involved and who love Portland State,’ he said.
The ambassador selection process begins Feb. 10, with an information session for applicants in Smith Memorial Student Union, room 338, at 5 p.m.

‘We want to encourage as many students to apply as possible. It’s an outstanding way to serve the PSU community and to develop leadership skills,’ Tarabocchia said.
The deadline for applications is Feb. 22 at 5 p.m.

Offering student perspective to the public is the main goal of ambassadors working in the community, but the benefits reach much further as each ambassador learns valuable leadership, networking and communication skills in the process.

‘Being an ambassador provides great opportunities to build relationships with faculty and allows you to get professional experience without having to leave school,’ said Tygue Howland, co-coordinator for Student Ambassadors and an ambassador for three years.

The ambassadors hold meetings each week to talk about upcoming events and listen to speakers discuss things like scholarship opportunities.

The co-coordinators facilitate skill-building activities, assigning members to campus tours and panel discussions while ambassadors exchange their latest liaison reports.’

First-year ambassador Felicia Bautista-Nelson is working with the College of Public and Urban Affairs in the hope of bringing composting to the Seattle’s Best and Pizzicato restaurants in the Urban Plaza.’

‘I want to try and merge the partnership between PSU Recycles! and Urban and Public Affairs so we can get compost bins further than just outside Smith Hall,’ she said, The group, although heavy with responsibility, has no trouble having fun, Tarabocchia said.

At the start of their Tuesday meeting, members played a game of imagining where they would go if they could go anywhere in the world. Italy, France, and India were mentioned more than once, and some joked that they would visit the fictional land of Shangri-La.’

At a retreat last weekend, the ambassadors made short films about their lives as student liaisons. The videos will be posted on the Web site after they are edited.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘

The Student Ambassador Program concept was generated in 1996, after students and faculty expressed a need for greater student representation at university related events, according to its Web site.

Ambassadors are dedicated to serving PSU through strong academic achievement, commitment and the ability to be a positive, productive member of a team.
Their duties also involve working closely with advisors, faculty, administrators and the admissions department.

The position description informs applicants that they should expect to dedicate between five to 10 hours per week to their responsibilities, in addition to an extensive training program.

During the Tuesday meeting, group members discussed who will lead which campus tour and who, afterward, will attend a panel discussion, when ambassadors will field questions from facilitators in front of a group of prospective students.
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Feb. 10: Information session for applicants, SMSU room 338, from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Feb. 16: Information session for applicants, SMSU room 294, from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Feb. 22: Applications due at Dean of Students Office, SMSU, room 433, by 5 p.m.
Feb. 27: Group interview
March 8’not; to March 11: Personal interviews
March 15: Announcement of selection results

New ambassador training: Summer 2010 (TBD)