A campus organization tasked with being the first impression new students see at the university is looking to expand.

The Saluki Ambassadors are looking to grow in order to continually introduce potential students to SIU.

Bethany Wendler, coordinator of Student Involvement and Leadership Development, said the ambassadors are the welcome face for students interested in attending the university.

“They present a really great face to the university,” Wendler said. “They’re the really friendly, outgoing students and so I think it does present a really good first initial experience.”

Saluki Ambassadors is run through the Undergraduate Admissions office. Alicia Guebert, coordinator of Saluki Ambassadors, said the program was founded in 2002, and although it has seen some change, it has always been focused on recruitment.

Guebert said the program is invaluable for recruiting future students, because visitors want to hear from current Salukis.

“Whenever we have prospective students and families come to visit campus, they talk to different departments, they talk to the admissions coordinators,” she said. “But really they want to hear the student’s perspective.”

ShaKyla McBee, a sophomore studying physiology from Memphis, Tenn. and president of the Saluki Ambassadors, said they are always looking for more students to become ambassadors. She said recently they have conducted several interviews for students who want to get connected with their community.

She said the ambassadors are the tour guides for the university, but now are also doing the university’s social media.

“We just got approved to be over SIU’s official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts,” she said. “We mail post cards to students, we call prospective students and we’re going to start this new program called Saluki Saturdays.”

Saluki Saturdays is a new way the program is welcoming high school students accepted by the university from southern Illinois. About 20 ambassadors drive to the future Saluki’s house and congratulate the student with balloons and music as part of the program.

“We are looking for enthusiastic individuals,” she said. “We need people that are very proud to be Salukis because we are the face of SIU.”

Guebert said during the fall semester, the ambassadors gained around 50 new members.

The ambassadors are heavily involved in benefiting potential scholars and the program could benefit anyone who wants to better leadership and speaking skills, Guebert said.

“They get a lot of practice public speaking, they give campus tours, they speak on student panels,” she said. “I mean they’re involved in a bunch of different things here on campus.”

McBee said the ambassadors are now in the process of becoming a Registered Student Organization. The group previously operated as an RSO until 2008, she said.

In order to become an RSO again, the ambassadors must meet with the Internal Affairs Committee and the Undergraduate Student Government for approval, Wendler said.

Saluki Ambassadors will meet with IAC in the beginning of February and with USG later in the month.

McBee said she hopes Saluki Ambassadors will be an official RSO by the end February.

For students interested in becoming a Saluki Ambassador, contact Alicia Guebert at [email protected].

Luke Nozicka can be reached at [email protected], on Twitter at @LukeNozicka, or at 536-3311 ext. 268.