Cassandra Gay is in the University of Missouri-St. Louis Welcome Center filling a large wicker basket with candy as she says, "The Welcome Center is the front door to the university."
When it comes to welcoming students to UM-St. Louis, Gay is on the front lines.
She can often be found working the front desk in the Welcome Center since she is the administrative assistant there. "We are a resource center for all students. We can answer questions for new students, but everyone is welcome to come in hang out," says Gay.
The Welcome Center is where campus tours for prospective UM-St. Louis students begin. While Gay's statement is a figurative one, the Welcome Center really is just a few steps inside the Millennium Student Center, directly across the hall from the bookstore. Campus tours are given twice a day, Monday through Thursday, and four times a day on Friday. Reservations for campus tours are not required-walk-ins are welcome.
The tours last around an hour, but sometimes longer, and are led by Student Associates such as Skip Jones, a junior in graphic design. Jones usually will lead a couple of tours a week. They are usually for just a few prospective students and their parents, but sometimes for groups as large as 30 people.
Jones allows that he did not have any trouble getting into the swing of speaking to groups. "You learn how to break the awkward silence, throw some jokes, and keep the people talking," he says. He laughs as he tells the story of how he walked backwards into a pole while he was leading a tour. "It was pretty funny. It messed me up for a second and made my head hurt, but everybody laughed," says Jones.
Eboni Redmond, a junior in criminology and criminal justice, is also a Student Associate at the Welcome Center. "Anything you need, we are always here to help," says Redmond. She says she never gets tired of leading the campus tours. "It's always fun, I love it. I really like getting to meet new people, especially prospective students. If they do decide to come here, they are more relaxed because they actually have somebody here that they know."
Redmond and Jones both agree that the most frequently asked questions on the campus tour are about living on campus. Redmond always speaks in favor of living on campus to the parents and prospects on the tour, and she knows what she is talking about. Even though she lives right here in St. Louis, Redmond decided to live on campus her freshman year. She wanted to have the full college life experience. "You are more involved in the campus, and you actually like your school a lot more if you live on campus," she says.
Talking a little more about FAQs on the campus tour, Jones says, "a lot of people want to know why parking is so expensive. It is a question I try to steer clear of."
The Welcome Center has a lot more to offer than just guided campus tours. Yolanda Weathersby is the manager of the Welcome Center, and she has been with the university for 22 years.
She points out, "We conduct workshops for customer service, and I am also co-chair on the Respect Committee, which works to change and build the culture on the campus community. We have a lot of things going on." Weathersby says of the Welcome Center, "we love our students that are already here, we love our prospective students and their families, and we are here for faculty and staff as well"
Weathersby wants to emphasize one particular thought for currently enrolled students, something that they might not automatically connect with the Welcome Center. "If you have a problem with a class that you might not feel comfortable going directly to the department with, you can come to us and we will act as a liaison to that particular department. You can come here for anything."
More information on workshops, new student orientations, and campus tours is available on the Welcome Center's web page at www.umsl.edu/~welcome, or you can simply search "Welcome Center" from the UM-St. Louis home page. Their phone number is 314-516-5460.
Everyone should feel free to stop by the Welcome Center and check it out. You can always get a bottle of water, a cup of coffee, or something from the candy basket. "The chocolate always disappears first," warns Gay.
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