Maybe it's the view they get from walking backward, or maybe it's their endless knowledge of
KU trivia,but for whatever reason,KU Ambassadors see the University from a different perspective.
They see it through the wide eyes of high school seniors getting their first glimpse of their future home and a new life of lecture classes and newfound freedom. They see it through the concerned eyes of a mother who seems quite interested in blue emergency phones and Saferide and through the eyes of an excited father who happily reminisces his own college days.
As a KU Ambassador, I walk parents and prospective students through the streets and sidewalks of campus, firing information and facts at them, while they shoot endless questions back.
Some of them have the "I'd rather be at MU" phrase written across their foreheads, but others are die hard fans. And some parents are alumni, happy to be back on campus. Best yet is giving a tour to future students who take their first steps on campus and know they are home
"That's the best part, is seeing their faces light up," said Palvih Bhana. Lawrence sophomore and KU Ambassador.
Other ambassadors agree.
Ambassadors are a group of 58 students who volunteer to give at least 10 tours of campus to prospective students and their parents each week. Each ambassador gives at least one tour and does one office hour a week, occasionally serving on question-and-answer panels. The ambassadors are students chosen through an application and interview process for their enthusiasm involvement and, most importantly, their love of the University.
"They're proud of their school, and they want to show it off," said Gail Sherron, scholarship counselor for the Office of Admissions. "They want everyone to come to KU and want everyone else to experience what they experience."
KU Ambassadors get little more than a pat on the back for what they do, but the Office of Admissions, the office through which KU Ambassadors function.
knows the importance of prospective students speaking with current students who know that they made the right decision about a university.
"They are our front door," Sherron said. "They are the first student impression that they get. How excited and enthusiastic they are about KU, that will taint their views of KU for the rest of their days. They will always remember their tour of KU."
Before KU Ambassadors was established in 1980,prospective students were not given the option of taking a tour of campus.
Paul Buskirk, associate director in the Athletics Department, established the ambassador program as a way to open up relations to interested students and parents.
"I think the campus is usually the selling point," said Amanda Kaschube, Flossmoor, Ill., sophomore and KU Ambassador. "If they're borderline, they see the campus and see how things are run, and it makes them want to go here."
Today, hundreds of prospective stu.
dents visit campus throughout the year and receive an hour-long tour that bombards them with trivia and gives them a chance to ask real students about life at the University. Questions range from what teacher-students relationships are like to where the best bars are in Lawrence.
To learn everything there is to know about the University, ambassadors go through training that consists of attending meetings, going on current ambassadors' tours and being tested on an ambassador's manual, full of KU tidbits. The goal is to educate the ambassadors on KU history, traditions, myths and basic information. The hope is that prospective students will start to consider the campus, tradition and history.
"I love it here," a potential freshmen from Oklahoma City said about the University. And as her face lit up in an excited grin, I took a second to remember why I do too.
If you are interested in becoming a KA Ambassador, call the Office of Admissions at 864-3911.
Ambassadors prove they are know-it-alls
And to your left ... Ambassadors must master the art of walking backward and remembering hundreds of facts about the University. Many KU students have experienced the tour, but most do not receive the reverse perspective. Now's your chancel Hold this page at arms length to get an idea of what the ambassadors see.
Prospective students question everything from IDs to KU facts
Weeks of training prepare KU Ambassadors for the arsenal of questions they can receive while giving curious tours.
By Kelly Clasen Special to the Kansan
Parents and prospective students ask questions on topics ranging from computer access in the residence halls to obtaining basketball tickets. The most common questions, however, have to do with what the University of Kansas and the city of Lawrence have to offer.
"When people ask me why I chose to go to KU, I tell them because it is a lot of fun, and you can meet people from all over the United States here," said Brenda Chung, Belle Plaine sophomore and KU Ambassador. "Going to school here makes me proud, and I tell them that, too."
Other ambassadors said that when prospective students were away from their parents,they often asked about getting alcohol and fake IDs.
Ambassadors are advised to say that underage drinking occurs but that the consequences can be severe if students are caught.
Blair Malone, Senatebia, Miss., sophomore and KU Ambassador, said she told what Lawrence had to offer but also mentioned activities such as swing dancing and movies.
During the tour, the ambassadors also offer prospective students tidbits of KU trivia.
Two popular KU facts often given out on tours are that the Tombaugh Observatory on top of Lindley Hall was named after the KU graduate who discovered Pluto and that helium gas was discovered in the basement of Bailey Hall, which was once a chemistry lab.
Carrie Depenbush, Columbus sophomore and KU Ambassador, said she also liked to tell about the history of Hoch Auditorium, which was built in 1927.
"They used to play basketball in the basement of Hoch Auditorium, but since there was limited seating, you could only buy tickets for half of a game, either the first or second half," she said. "There were crimson tickets for one half and blue tickets for the other half."
Other popular tales include the super stition surrounding the Campanile. The story says that if students walk through it before graduation, they are doomed not to graduate.
Curus Sloan, Powhattan sophomore and KU Ambassador, said he liked to include the fact that there are 17.851 trees on the KU campus.
"I just like to mention that because I am impressed that someone actually took the time to count them all," he said.
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