Student ambassador positions are now open to Clark students for the fall 2008 school year. The 10 paid positions require students to represent Clark to prospective students, student ambassador coordinator Vanessa Watkins said.
 
    Watkins said the positions are available to students at Clark with a grade point average of 2.5 or higher. Students must be at least 18 years old. The positions require the ambassador to be enrolled in a minimum of six credits per quarter.

    Watkins said that if students are interested in applying for a position, they can pick up an application in either the Welcome Center or fill one out online at the college Web site www.clark.edu/ambassador.
 
    “Student ambassadors give the student perspective to prospective students,” Watkins said.
 
    The positions involve assisting the Welcome Center and helping students feel comfortable at Clark, Watkins said. She said that student ambassadors are trained to give campus tours to prospective students.

    They also assist with events like Running Start Night and with other campus partners like the Associated Students of Clark College (ASCC), who need assistance. The events include club functions.
 
    “We rely on them to be able to talk about Clark to prospective students,” Watkins said.
 
    The student ambassador is a paid position that is considered an institutional hire at Clark. The wage is $8.07 per hour. Watkins said that she is attempting to increase the wage because ambassadors do a considerable amount of work. The position requires six to 17 hours a week.
 
    “All my life I’ve liked helping people,” student ambassador Kseniya Kracheninnikova said. “I like answering questions.”
 
    Kracheninnikova will be going into her third year as a student ambassador. Kracheninnikova said that English is not her first language, and that this position has improved her language skills.

    She said that when she wears her blue shirt embroidered with “Student Ambassador,” students walk up to her and ask her questions. She said that it feels positive to help them.
 
    Watkins said that when students are selected for the position, they go through leadership training provided by the Washington Community Technical College Leadership and Activities Institute at Yakima Valley Community College during the summer. At leadership training, ambassadors meet with other student leaders who have been in their positions before.

    “It’s pretty fun and a good start to the year,” Watkins said.
 
    Watkins said that the most qualified students are those who are excited about Clark and who work well with peers. Watkin said that the student ambassador’s position can prepare them for work later on in life dealing with a team setting, communication skills and leadership qualities.

    Student ambassador Gaylen Dewey said that before he became a student ambassador, he worked in the retail industry. He said that the best part of his work in retail was the interpersonal interaction he had with costumers, but he didn’t like the pressure to push sales.

    Dewey said that as a student ambassador, he still gets to enjoy the interpersonal interaction without the pressure. “It’s broadening,” Dewey said. “This has been a changing experience.”