By Katie Allen, Contributing writer
Southeastern’s office of University Recruitment hosts SE Live Open House once each semester. However, due to the inopportune timing of snow days Southeastern has had this semester, SE Live was postponed twice and has since been rescheduled a third time for March 9.
“We were extremely disappointed to have to postpone SE Live twice due to the winter weather storms, and we are very excited to have the event rescheduled,” said Elizabeth Stidham, coordinator of SE University Recruitment.
“We considered canceling the event, but this is always a successful event for us. We know the campus visit is one of the main reasons a student chooses a college, so we wanted to make sure the students had a chance to experience Southeastern,” Stidham said.
SE Live is Southeastern’s biggest recruitment event, designed to give prospective students a feel for what life at SE is really like. The high school juniors and seniors attending the event are invited to experience SE traditions, attend a real SE class, tour the campus, eat a free lunch, interact with current SE students and overall get acquainted with the university.
Last year alone, over 500 students attended.
The event, originally scheduled for Feb. 2 and then rescheduled for Feb. 9, has been extremely beneficial to prospective students.
“SE Live is great because the students who attend get to experience life as if they were a Southeastern student,” said Marcus High, SE recruiter.
SE Live is organized by SE Recruitment, with the help of the True Blue Ambassadors. The Ambassadors are current SE students who have shown leadership ability to represent Southeastern at recruitment and alumni events. They were nominated by faculty and staff members and went through an application and interview process to be selected.
“True Blue Ambassadors contribute a large part of SE Live’s success. They give campus tours, help lead students to different SE Live sessions and help make the event more student-centered,” said Amity Smith, SE recruiter.
Students who attend SE Live will also have the opportunity to be entertained by Southeastern organizations like the Sparks Dance Team, Southeastern Chorale, the Debate Team and the Southeastern Marching Band.
There will be around 200 prospective SE students attending campus for the event, and the majority of those students will be enrolling for the fall 2011 semester. SE Live is a day for the prospective students to experience college life with a group of students who may very well become their peers.
For more information on SE Live, SE Recruitment or True Blue Ambassadors, visit www.se.edu/future-students.