The Belmont Ambassadors do more than wear red blazers; these 27 students represent Belmont University.
According to Belmont Ambassador Advisor Debbie Coppinger, the ambassadors are the official hosts and hostesses of Belmont. Since 1998, the ambassadors served underneath the President’s Office and directly with the Alumni Office.
Representing the student body, Coppinger explained that Ambassadors make a diverse group consisting of 11 males and 16 females from 13 states and two countries, including South Africa and Ghana.
These unpaid volunteers work events including ribbon-cuttings, press releases, receptions, trustee meetings and basketball games.
“For the alumni, it’s a direct connection to students and what’s going on at their alma mater. It also can be a resource to ambassadors. You get to meet trustees and accomplished alumni, some of which have buildings named after them, and they truly want to see you succeed,” President of Belmont Ambassadors Kyle Kilgore said.
The university has more than 28,000 alumni that come from all walks of life.
“I have had dealings with alumni that have graduated in recent years and alumni that were part of Belmont when it was Ward-Belmont, the all-girls school. Ward-Belmont has a yearly luncheon, and the ladies are in shock when they walk on campus every year. It was such a different place then,” Kilgore said.
With the developments around campus, ambassadors must greet alumni at building openings.
“Working the chapel’s dedication was the best part, hearing Dr. Fisher and Dr. Thomas talk about why the chapel was so important to them, ” said Belmont junior and ambassador Mareon Smit.
Ambassadors also work President Fisher’s suite at basketball games, where, according to ambassador Evin Edens, alumni get to know students on a personal level by “putting a face to a player” as well as meeting non-athletes.
Kilgore highly valued personal networking with alumni, hoping to take part in the future.
“We’re all going to graduate from Belmont and move on at some point. I want to stay connected. So, it’s cool to give that to somebody else now.”
This article was written by Brooklyn Penn.
Photo provided by Kyle Kilgore.