The College of Liberal Arts and Education (CLAE) at the University of Detroit Mercy started the new year running with its student ambassador program coming into form. The program, which will be fully operational in February, has selected nine ambassadors to dawn the task of increasing good connections with prospective students at Detroit Mercy with the individuals that currently roam and thrive on its campus.
The goals of the program are simple, through radical hospitality from these ambassadors, potential future Titans will not only just make networking connections, but hopefully good friendships and relationships after experiencing the empathy of a Jesuit and Mercy experience first-hand. The ambassadors will be attending almost every single event on campus, bringing forth a vibrancy that can be appreciated while demonstrating their qualities as true leaders of the college.
The hope for the ambassador's lasting impact is that they can create emotional contact with these prospective students to build inclusive communities of belonging.
Dean of CLAE, Jocelyn Boryczka, said of this connection, “When we see others in the world who represent what we want to achieve, that gives us confidence and lets us see a pathway forward.”
She further elaborated on her vision for the program, putting it frankly that “it's really about connecting students to students and students to programs, events and initiatives.”
While CLAE is rolling out its ambassador program, it is not the first of its kind as other colleges on campus and even admissions have programs of their own. However, this program looks to be a lot more hands on, with the interpersonal communication and storytelling ability of the ambassadors as a focal point of driving home a perfect link and connection. CLAE offers a wide variety of majors and programs and sees a diverse group of students come in and out every day.
Students from this college especially can thrive in a role such as an ambassador for the university and will look to do so in the coming months.
CLAE’s associate dean of undergraduate education, Greg Grobis, is excited for the program and what it can do, especially the premise of the future. He said he was "looking forward to building up scaffolding around this program to ensure its success in the future.”
This success will take some time as prospective students only enroll in the masses once a year, but the effort will be evident whether through social media or face to face interactions. This effort will lead to results, and these results will likely please both Dean Boryczka and the rest of the CLAE community.
The long-lasting effects of these ambassadors' efforts will be felt in admissions as well as overall student life on campus. This is not just because they were good mentors and left the school in a good place but because they created valuable connections with good individuals who chose the smaller more involved environment of Detroit Mercy.
