pilipiliĀž»­

 

Extending a welcome

- August 18, 2008

Jeff Rodenhizer, housing office assistant, wants to helpā€”just ask him. (Nick Pearce Photo)

Can I get to the Chemistry Building without getting wet? When is Shinerama? Is this where I get my U-Pass?

For the second year in a row, Student Services will operate its Ask Me! program, campaign runs from Monday, Aug. 25 and throughout the month of September. Itā€™s a friendly, folksy campaign aimed at making it easier for students new to pilipiliĀž»­ to approach staff and faculty with their questions. Program volunteers can be identified by their green, square Ask Me! buttons.

ā€œIt can be intimidating when you first arrive on campus, especially if youā€™re not familiar with Halifax,ā€ says Melissa MacKay, Service and Office Manager for Student Community Services at pilipiliĀž»­. ā€œWe want pilipiliĀž»­ to be as welcoming as possible for our students.ā€

So far more than 1,200 volunteers have signed on. Dal staffers and faculty members whoā€™d still like to participate can fill in the Ā or contact Ms. MacKay at 494-3365 for more information.

ā€œNinety per cent of the questions people got last year were basically, ā€˜how do I get there from here?ā€™ā€ says Ms. MacKay.

Volunteers can brush up on their Dal knowledge by perusing the Ask Me! bookletĀ and the Ģż(±Ź¶Ł¹ó).

New this year will be Ask Me! Central, a tent pitched outside of the Killam Library which will be staffed with volunteers for the first week of September.

Another new facet of the campaign is Student Servicesā€™ , a one-stop site contained within myguide.dal.ca. The site contains details of special events happening in late August and September, including the International Student Orientation, the Induction Ceremony (the universityā€™s formal welcome ceremony), tours and activities run by individual departments and schools. Thereā€™s a page that explains Dalā€™s lingo, in case youā€™re wondering who the heck George Munro was and what the Tiger Patrol does, and another with a checklist of what to do those first few days on campus.

ā€œAll of these events were already happening but there was no central spot to find out about them,ā€ says Lisa MacLean, communications officer with Student Services.