by Alexia Hall

When NVC’s Student Leadership and Activities Coordinator  Darryl Nettles  was asked to make-over the student ambassador program at NVC  6 years ago, he had a quite a task.

The program was small and hadn’t made much progress in comparison to similar programs in other educational organizations. Today, the program has grown to 21 ambassadors.

“We had so many good applicants, so many good people,” Nettles said. “We were originally funded for only 15 ambassadors, but we made room.”

It might be NVC’s best kept secret. Ambassadors volunteer their time for a chance to represent the school in a variety of ways; they may be asked to give campus tours, serve on committees, organize a school function, or even usher at a Wildcats game.

All in all, ambassadors must put in 48 hours of service by the end of the year. That averages out to 3 hours per week. Ambassadors who complete their service receive a $500 dollar scholarship for the year, $250 for each semester.

But Nettles insists that’s not why most ambassadors give their time.

 “I’m amazed at the amount of time some of our student ambassadors put in. I mean, you’re talking about students who have a family, work full time, and go to school full time, yet they love the program and NVC so much, that they put in the extra time. They tell me they’re not doing it for the money.”

“The program has so much intrinsic value,” Nettles says, “Students have networking opportunities, and they develop marketing and leadership skills they might not otherwise get.”

Nettles stated that his staff is looking for a variety of students. “We’re looking for enthusiastic people, not necessarily stellar students who have a 4.0 GPA. We’re also looking for those students who we can help to grow through this opportunity.”

Applications for next year’s ambassadors start April 1. Interested students should apply at the Cypress Center RM 126. The deadline for applications is April 19.

Alexia Hall is a student at Northwest Vista College