Coleman Day Fun and the Kewl Tour Story! (Part 1 of the Ramble Chronicles)

So, on Monday we had one BUSY day in the office! NOT ONLY did we have a TON of awesome prospectives coming to visit us on their off-day for President's Day, but it was also Coleman Day for students of color interested in applying for the Coleman Scholarship! Their was activity all over campus, with tours flying in and out on the hour! (I have NO IDEA how Debi does it! She keeps that place running like clockwork and NEVER seems to lose her cool. She's always on top of things. Good ol' Albright reliability! When you come for a visit, make sure you give Debi an EXTRA-large "Thanks," for all that it takes to put something that seems as simple as a jaunt around campus together. I ASSURE you that it's more work than you know, but a task that she, as well as her faithful phone people, take on to ensure that those people who will flourish at the 'bright have every opportunity to learn as much as they can about life here ;o)
I digress, moderately, but the point is that Coleman Day was WICKED AWESOME! Reli, one of our newest counselors, did a FABULOUS job planning the events and keeping things fun and interesting for the families, and even we Ambassadors had a BLAST! Congrats, Reli! Whoot-Whoot! ;o) From a heart-warming perspective, I just want to make it known that the Coleman Family themselves continue to show up for the Coleman Day to show their love and support of Albright. It's just amazing that all that Joseph E. Coleman, first student of color to graduate from Albright, did in support of Albright is carried on through his family, just as Albright students who graduate and move on still manage to leave their mark of values, responsibility, loyalty, and respect on those who come after them. There are lots of opportunities to touch lives if you take the time to stop, look, and listen to the world around you. Pay it forward! ;o)
I toured a bunch of people interested in joining the Albright family, but one of my Ambassador pals told me this story of one family that just REALLY made me smile! :o) So, apparently this student was on the fence between Albright and another local college, which shall remain nameless, and so this tour had to be BANGIN'! Knowing this particular Ambassador I can only IMAGINE that they pulled out all the stops! Anyway, they said that by the end of the tour and after just a SLEW of fun, chill conversation, the student said that they couldn't even THINK of anything but Albright, and it just really felt like their new home already!
Now, THAT'S what it's all about right there. We have a heavy job as Ambassadors representing what it is to be a member of the Albright College family. It's as though we are the foreign dignitaries of college land, charged with the sole responsibility of ensuring that those inquiring of Albright understand what "A different way of thinking..." truly means. It's so much more than just some slogan about how unique Albright is, and how much Albright is set apart from any other college with it's progressively minded students, staff, and faculty, although in just saying that it speaks volumes of the Albright experience. What is often missed is the fact that Albright doesn't think differently in order to attract a certain type of student. Classes of unique, willful, caring, sincere individual with various talents and abilties, as well as strengths and weaknesses, playing off of one another in a safe, warm, trusting, supportive, driven environment where people are truly fated and blessed to pass through that archway everyday and who gladly traverse rain, sleet, snow, and all other elements, meteorological, as well as personal hurdles, in order to come together to create a better world for everyone, learned and unlearned, familiar and estranged, exude a very special aura on campus, which LEADS to "A different way of thinking," interacting, feeling, acting, learning, loving, and living, which will remain with you for the rest of your life! (That is one HUGE, sentence, so don't get lost in it. I was just feeling really heavy with some Albright love, so I dumped it all in there!)
*Okay, so just so y'all know, I had a HUGE blog entry, of which this is part one of three, so check out my next two as well, and continue the train of thought! *Whoo-Whoo! Train's leavin' the station! ;o)*