The Student Orientation Staff at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette recently attended the Southern Regional Orientation Workshop and walked away with top honors in three primary competitions. The purpose of the conference is to develop student volunteers into skilled orientation leaders by teaching them about best practices in orientation.
SROW, hosted this year by Florida State University and Tallahassee Community College, is part of the National Orientation Directors Association and is represented by 110 colleges and universities within Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.
The first competition was the skit/song/dance competition, which is designed to develop each orientation staff's creative ability to showcase their campus highlights. Leadership Team and SOS Performance Committee co-chairs Mindy Boudreaux and Hannah Gerard led the team to a first place win.
“ It was probably one of the happiest moments of my life,” recalled Boureaux. SOS will perform its award-winning piece at each freshman orientation session.
The second competition is the overall school spirit award. The most coveted award at the conference, It is designed to instill greater school spirit among staff leaders. SOS Leadership Team member and Spirit Committee chairperson Bhrea' Jones led UL Lafayette to achieve top honors in this category.
Marc Berard and Theo Stripling along with the SOS Presentation committee, developed and presented a diversity awareness session entitled O.D.D.B.A.L.L.S. Their presentation was among 79 educational sessions that were presented by professionals and undergraduate students. With the hard work of Berard and Stripling, UL Lafayette received the award for Best Undergraduate Educational Session.
“ We are humbled by the recognition we have received. This staff has set the bar very high for the students who will follow in their footsteps,” said Mary Hernandez, director of Orientation. “The accolades are wonderful, but the best part is our students come away with a strong foundation based on the latest developments in the field of orientation.”
The 2007 Student Orientation Staff (SOS) Members include: Aimee Whiteley, Amanda Stevenson, Amber Gordon, Bhrea' Jones, Brian Egland, Brionnie Andrews, Britany Cormier, Chelsea Farris, Chris Boudreaux, Colin Duhon, Daniel Mayard, Desiree' Portalis, Destini DeRouen, Erica Phares, Hannah Gerard, Jamey Arnette, Jami Soileau, Jenna Lachney, Jessi Soileau, Jessica Hebert, Kaitlin Broussard, Karl Helo, Kaye Choate, Kayleih McInnis, Kelsey King, Kirsten Lannoo, Kyle Lavergne, Laura Bullinger, Lizzy Hardison, Marc Berard, Margaret Chiasson, Mechelle Kirts, Michelle Harper, Mindy Boudreaux, Moriah Istre, Natalie Thibodeaux, Robert Brice, and Theo Stripling.