Need Campus Navigator? Look to Tour Guide Club
Trying to navigate around the college or want to help people find their way around campus? The Tour Guide Club might be the right place for you. The club operates from the Admissions Office, located in the Guenther Enrollment Services Center. Club members give campus tours to anyone interested in seeing what the college campus is like. “We have walk-in tours every day the school is open,” said the club’s president, Kaitlyn Lounsbury.
In addition to giving tours during in-school sessions, members are often present at the college’s open house events, such as the Fall and Spring Orientations. Tour Guide Club advisor and Associate Director of Admissions, Melissa Coon said, “[The club members] are the faces of Hudson Valley and present the college in a positive matter.” According to Coon, the Tour Guides take about 3,000 people annually on campus tours. This includes prospective students with their families, college alumni, and HVCC Foundation donors. The club is also open to currently enrolled students. “Anyone can join the club as a paid member or a volunteer,” said the club president.
However, those who want to get paid will have to apply and go through an interview process before getting hired. “If any interested students apply and do well in the interview they’ll get the job just like in the work place,” said Coon. Paid club members are compensated $8 per hour like any other student-workers in the college. If qualified, paid members in the club can be a part of HVCC’s Federal Work- Study program, where their compensation would go towards their financial aid. However, any student can skip the application and interview process and simply join as a volunteer. While not being compensated for their involvement in the club, volunteers can participate in all of the clubs activities. “The Tour Guide Club is all about being a college representative and a student,” said Coon. “It involves knowing about every aspect of HVCC and presenting it in a way that makes the college look good and is informative.” Solanyi Ulloa, who recently joined the Tour Guide Club, said, “It’s an interesting club and I think of it as a second family.”
Ulloa says that while providing tours and taking care of any work in the Admissions Office, the Tour Guides all develop friendly bonds with each other. “We have a lot of fun here,” said Ulloa, “It’s not just work, it’s a friendly relationship with everyone there.”
The club is currently made up of 12 students, which according to the advisor is the average amount of members each year. “It’s a small club, but we’d be willing to grow it even higher,” said Coon. Students interested in joining should either contact the Student Activities office, or go on the college website to fill out a club interest form. The club will contact the student and provide information about joining. Interested students can also speak to a club member or the adviser in the Admissions Office.