Mason Ambassadors Keep the Spirit Alive

By Liz Sherman
The Mason Ambassadors, a group of student leaders who work with the Alumni Affairs and Admissions Offices, support outreach efforts and create spirit for more than 60,000 George Mason graduates, says Chris Clark-Talley, acting director of Alumni Affairs. "Their mission is to help facilitate student recruitment and alumni relations through the support of Alumni Affairs and Admission programs," Clark-Talley says. "These students are specifically involved with Admissions Open Houses, tours and visits, and special alumni events." Such events include the Celebration of Distinction Awards Banquet, Mason Day at Gunston Hall, and the association's hospitality tent at the Virginia Gold Cup.

The Mason Ambassadors coordinate the Class Appreciation Days such as the Freshman Lemonade Stand, the Sophomore Pool Party, and Junior Hoops Night. During such activities, the ambassadors receive valuable input from fellow students which further strengthens the relationship among undergraduates, graduates, and the university, Clark-Talley says. "Student involvement results in better and more effective programming, because they know what their peers want."

The Mason Ambassadors is not a new idea, Clark-Talley says, "but a revived, more structured" group that used to be called Mason Messengers. This year 10 students were chosen to represent the university as Mason Ambassadors. Recruiting for the next year is currently taking place with the hope of expanding the group.

Students are selected through a nomination process or by application. A selection committee comprising staff members from Admissions and Alumni Affairs then select the ideal candidates. According to Clark-Talley, these students are "very positive about their Mason experience and have been involved in a variety of activities on and off campus." Most importantly, she continues, the students need to have a desire to give something back to the university.

So why the push for a larger group? "We want to get the word out about what the Alumni Association is and what it does, so students can make a connection before they graduate," Clark-Talley says.

George Mason Ambassador Kelly Bulliner, an economics major, says the ambassadors' personal experiences with the university "allows us to open a prospective student's eyes to the possibilities that exist at Mason." In addition, the student group plays an important role in bridging the gap between the past and present student bodies of the university. "Participation in activities such as sophomore and junior class appreciation nights allow us to show the relationship between Alumni Affairs and the student body, which begins as a freshman and continues past graduation," Bulliner says.

For more infor-mation on the Mason Ambassadors, call Office of Alumni Affairs at (703) 993-8696.