Volunteer student ambassadors could soon be facing an identity crisis.
A debate between members is questioning whether to turn the program into a paid position, subsequently removing "volunteer" from the organization's title.
Joel Weyand, vice president of admission, said no decisions have been made on whether the position will be paid next semester, but he wanted the feedback of current ambassadors.
The current required time commitment is two office hours per week, including giving tours to prospective students. In addition, there are occasional weekend events such as the overnight bus trip from Colorado, and ambassadors also write postcards to prospective students on their own time.
If the position were paid, Weyand said it was possible the office hours would increase to three.
He said the position would most likely be minimum wage, and the money would come out of the admissions budget.
But Weyand said that ambassadors were important enough to make those sacrifices.
“They’re a high enough priority that if I have to take money away (to pay students), it’s worth it,” Weyand said.
Sophomore Tony Odem recently resigned as an ambassador. He said he originally joined because he liked his ambassador during his tour and wanted to inspire others to attend Doane.
“It (ambassadors) being a volunteer program shows people care about it,” Odem said.
However, he said his feelings toward the position changed.
“It was really demanding and I wasn’t getting self-fulfillment out of it,” Odem said. “If I’m not passionate there’s no point in doing it.”
Sophomore Laura Jacob said that paying ambassadors could increase students' involvement in the program.
“It holds the ambassadors more accountable,” Jacob said.
She said if the position was paid and ambassadors didn't show up to work, they wouldn't get paid, whereas currently there is no punishment for missing scheduled hours.
Still, the increased work load on current ambassadors indicates a positive change for the college itself.
“The only reason it’s gotten so difficult is because there’s so much more interest in Doane,” Jacob said.
Weyand said that with visit numbers up, he feared burnout would increase. Some ambassadors may have stretched themselves too thin with too many activities, he said.
By paying ambassadors, Weyand said that hopefully a higher number of students would commit and pull their weight in the program.
Currently, no decisions have been made to change the system.
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