IU guides show freshmen the way

Standing in the 90-degree heat with their “ask me” buttons gleaming in the sun, clans of IU guides directed the dazed and confused freshmen to their destinations for their first two days of classes.

On Tuesday, the guides from the Office of Orientation Programs set up sites all around main points on campus from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. to help freshmen and transfer students find their classes. They will do the same again today.

The boiling temperatures might seem excruciating for some, but sophomore Illana Rifkin found humor in some of the questions freshmen asked her.

“The one question I wasn’t expecting was where a bike rack was,” Rifkin said. All other questions she could answer, but that one took her by surprise.

Although some questions seemed quirky, guides gave out maps and smiles to those who seemed unsure of where they were going.

Rifkin remembers when the roles were reversed.

“The guides on Third Street really helped me out last year,” Rifkin said. She had no idea where she was going, and they were helpful to her on her first couple of days.

Of course, it is not just the upperclassmen assisting the wide-eyed freshmen – the IU staff is as well. Emily McCallister, assistant director of the Office of Orientation Programs, said some guides are faculty and staff.

“I thought it would be a cool way to get involved outside of the office,” said Anna Vanderzee, staff member of the Office of Admissions. The program needed volunteers, so Vanderzee thought it was a good way to familiarize herself with the freshmen.

This is the fourth year having IU guides on campus, and the Office of Orientation Programs has several alliances with other offices that are involved as well, including the Office of Dean of the Faculties, McCallister said.

“The mission of our office is just to help the freshmen transition into the university,” McCallister said.

Although the same faces tend to come back every year to help, the program is always looking for eager volunteers.

Once it’s time to plan, the office sends out an e-mail to its partners and student leaders on campus. Each guide signs up and is then  sent out into the madness of IU’s campus.

“They are just there to say ‘hello’ to everyone, greet them and welcome them back to the new school year,” McCallister said.

It is a very simple process: With just a smile and a point in the right direction, it shows the freshmen that the campus is not so scary and big after all, McCallister said.