The BoD Squad

Bears of Distinction connecting past, present and future

学生、教师和校友都说勒努瓦-莱恩有一些特别之处. For future Bears, 校园之旅为未来的学生提供了兴奋的感觉和一种仪式.

Helping to make those visits transformative and memorable are Bears of Distinction, otherwise known as BoDs. For almost two decades, 担任董事的学生一直是大学的脸面，也是未来学生的真实声音.

“While year-to-year, the BoDs are a small group of individuals, their impact at LR is huge,” said Undergraduate Admission Counselor Sara Hollar ’17. “Whether they are building relationships with prospective students on a campus tour, getting involved with Bears Give Back, LR’s annual giving day, or serving as part of the Student Government Association, our Bears of Distinction are not only an important part of the Office of Admission, but they are also integral players on the LR campus as a whole.”

Bears of Distinction Share LR History and Tradition

The Bears of Distinction, established in 2004, 最初是为了在在校学生和勒努瓦-莱恩校友之间建立联系而成立的. Fostering a sense of pride and LR tradition, they worked closely with the Alumni Association to improve student involvement. Perrell D. Bess ’06 was an inaugural BoD and treasured his experience.

“这个角色弥合了学生和回来参观校园的校友之间的差距,” said Bess. “It was great for networking since they had a wealth of knowledge and connections.”

The benefits from Bess’ experience are still the same today. In addition to networking, 他学会了公开演讲，学会了如何驾驭不同世代之间的对话.

“When the right students are Bears of Distinction and love Lenoir-Rhyne, 他们是未来的学生和他们的父母看到的第一张面孔，并真正影响他们的决定,” added Bess.

Today, LR’s campus spans 56 acres, 这限制了未来的学生和游客在一个多小时内可以看到和做什么. The walking tour circulates 1.25 miles through campus staples — Cromer Center, Carl A. Rudisill Library and the Daniel E. Rhyne Building — as well as a residence hall and several classroom buildings. During the tour, BoDs promote the university by showcasing academics, 全球网赌十大网站和居住生活，每年500至600名未来的学生和家庭成员.

April and the fall months are the busiest for tours, with the Office of Admission providing campus tours year-round. Following meetings between families and admission counselors, 未来的学生通常会与志趣相投的导游配对，以便在进入校园的第一刻就产生对LR的归属感. Although the BoDs — highly trained undergraduates — have required talking points, 他们被鼓励即兴发挥，并加入个人对话，使体验更有意义.

“The Bears of Distinction are the faces of Lenoir-Rhyne,” said Hollar. “这些学生非常投入，思想开放，渴望与他人分享他们的LR旅程. While our admission counselors build strong relationships with prospective students, the BoDs are the ones who solidify that rapport. Prospective students want to hear from their peers. Students tend to become more relaxed while on a tour, and chatting with our BoDs can help ease the nerves of the college search process.”

In addition to providing campus tours, the BoDS are assigned a variety of tasks. For example, 他们全年协助所有本科生全球赌博十大网站活动的执行, including the preparation before the events. They also support the Office of Admission social media team, providing creative ideas to engage with prospective students digitally.

Becoming a Bear of Distinction

Dozens of students interview for BoD positions each year, and around 20 serve as ambassadors for the university each year. 扮演这个角色的人的任务是讲述勒努瓦-莱恩的复杂故事, past and present.

As tour guides, LR的董事会是未来的学生和游客在校园里遇到的最坦诚的权威机构之一. 一个好的旅行与其说是勒努瓦-莱恩的最终故事，不如说是勒努瓦-莱恩学生的个人故事. Like all LR students, 这些董事们热切地沉浸在这个充满活力的校园社区中，并呼吁他们自己的学生经历让游客体验到LR的生活.

在自己的舒适区之外发现自己的能力，是娜塔莉·哈斯(Natalie Haas) 25年BoD经历中最好的方面之一, exercise science and sports management major.

哈斯说:“成为一名BoD可以打开你自己的新部分，帮助你更多地了解自己。. “我很安静也很紧张，但这帮助我敞开心扉，更自在地向别人展示我是谁.”

Haas, a member of the LR Spirit Team and the Engaged Scholars Program, credits those experiences with shaping her role as a BoD.

“I represent LR in multiple ways,” said Haas. “I am one of the first people prospective students see, 因此，我想谈谈LR的特别之处，并分享我是如何知道自己做出了正确的决定.”

23岁的历史专业学生伊恩·坎贝尔(Ian Campbell)欣然接受了BoD的机会，以发展自己的专业技能.

“As a BoD, I’m a friendly face first and foremost,” said Campbell. “During event days and on tours, 我是一个锚，学生们可以把自己绑在这里，因为这对他们来说是一种非常不同的经历. I show them what the family experience is like at Lenoir-Rhyne.”

Each BoD is responsible for knowing important details about Lenoir-Rhyne. In addition, 他们与经验丰富的董事们进行模拟旅行，让经验丰富的董事们训练年轻的董事. Each year, all BoDs attend a fall and a spring retreat plus regular staff meetings, learning new and updated information.

Immeasurable Value

Although the institution has changed since the BoDs first debuted, their value to the university is immeasurable.

“全球网赌十大网站的BoD团队学习了学生在毕业后可以随身携带的任何职位都需要学习的典型技能,” said Hollar. “In addition, 我希望他们学习并真正了解他们对未来学生的生活有多大的影响. Students visiting campus are nervous, and it is a big change for anyone, 但他们真的记得，在校期间会向导游寻求指导. Students remember their campus visit experience, and in most cases, 他们与导游的对话和互动是决定他们未来四年的家在哪里的主要因素.”

Influenced by her campus tour experience at LR, Bethany Perry ’24, a biology major, loves interacting with people and said her two-year experience has been exceptional.

“I have the ability to learn and grow and hold a leadership position,” said Perry. “这段经历也让我有机会通过与其他bod互动来创建一个家庭. 我认为作为BoD的价值在于社区方面，因为我可以吸引人们，让他们觉得LR是他们的家.”

坎贝尔说，在校园营造家的感觉不仅仅是参观. “When I’m out and about on campus, 我总是确保和人打招呼，因为了解每天见到的人很重要.”

Serving in a leadership role, biochemistry major Diego Sanjuan helps oversee training, organize retreats and leads certain admission events. He called his experience as a BoD transformative.

“它的价值在于与那些正在寻找归属感的学生建立联系, a place to learn, to grow,” said Sanjuan. “我认为全球网赌十大网站很荣幸能够站在第一线，帮助未来的学生在一个他们可以联系和归属的社区中认识和发现自己.”

此外，他们在形成社区意识方面的作用也是LR体验不可或缺的一部分, 坎贝尔分享了董事会如何经常成为满足校园其他需求的首选资源.

“We’re a campus staple. Sometimes we’re tour guides helping with admissions, but we’re also people who are available and ready to answer whatever call. For example, 如果不同的部门需要一个额外的人来帮助一个活动，或者如果面试官需要和学生代表交谈，总有一个BoD可以帮助你解决任何问题.”

Perry reinforced the role BoDs play as unofficial campus leaders. “Sometimes we do promotional activities — things like Q&至于社交媒体上的帖子——不仅要吸引未来学生的参与，还要吸引整个校园的参与. We do events like Scholarship Day, which is a big one. 在招生方面，全球网赌十大网站希望人们对LR感到兴奋，全球网赌十大网站希望他们保持兴奋.”

Campbell summed up the perfect depiction of his BoD experience. “作为一名董事，我获得了帮助学生从高中过渡到成年的宝贵技能. I like being a Bear of Distinction because I represent something bigger than myself.”