Tour guides mold face of UNC

When Maggie Kao walks through UNC's campus, she can talk about the history of the Davie Poplar and the fact that parts of "Patch Adams" were filmed on campus.

Kao knows this, and many tidbits about the University, because she is one of 135 tour guides selected by the Office of Undergraduate Admissions each year to give prospective students their initial impressions of UNC.

In the last year, more than 34,000 prospective students and family members have had an opportunity to take a campus tour.

For many students, the tour is the first time they've ever set foot on campus, and the tour guide is the first person they meet.

"I loved all the random facts the tour guides told us," said Sandra Hourani, a high school senior from Brookfield, Conn., who took the tour earlier this semester. "And I loved the Pit."

Students selected as tour guides are part of what senior Rena Chernotsky, who serves as one of the four tour coordinators, calls a "nonpaying gig."

"Tour guides open the front door to Carolina for their students," said Jared Rosenberg, senior assistant director of undergraduate admissions, who credits his interest in admissions to three years as a college tour guide.

About 40 percent of applicants are accepted for the job. Tour guides volunteer at least an hour of their time each week without pay - except during the summer, when guides are paid for their busy five-day work week.

Tour Coordinator Patty Robbins, a senior political science major, said the program's volunteer aspect is an advantage since tour guides work because they want to.

"I want to talk to prospective students who are in the same place I was and help them make those big decisions," Robbins said.

Senior business major and tour guide Matt Collander said he aims for the same goal and tries to give students a real feel for campus.

"It's about the knowledge that I've helped put these students in the place that will make them happiest," he said.

On each tour, which begins at Jackson Hall, guides use their experience to tell parents and students about the University.

"Prospective students want an honest answer, not someone who paints a pretty picture," said senior tour guide Ruthie Warshenbrot.

Warshenbrot said she thinks it's most important to inform prospective students about UNC's active student body. She always tells students it's "easier to make a large school small than a small school large."

In order to ensure that guides are able to provide such information, they undergo a rigorous training program in which they receive a detailed 40-page manual, shadow experienced guides and practice role-playing for unusual situations.

Warshenbrot vividly recalled a tour when a parent who hailed from a small town was immensely concerned about sending her son to the "big bustling city of Chapel Hill."

Training also gives tour guides unique information about the University.

One interesting story Kao tells her tour groups centers on why the Playmakers Theatre faces east instead of facing Cameron Avenue like it appears it should.

Tour groups are entertained when they learn that the doors of the theater face Raleigh as an open invitation to the women of N.C. State University from UNC's then all-male student body.

In addition to a knowledge of the University, Rosenberg said, tour guides need to be outgoing, good public speakers and energetic.

To that end, the tour guide program might be experiencing some significant changes in the near future.

Rosenberg hopes to rename the program to signify that guides, who are more like admissions ambassadors, do more than just tour - they also run online chats and attend conferences.

Regardless of their name, Kao said, tour guides have a huge impact on campus.

"It seems like a small commitment, but it contributes in a big way."

Contact the Features Editor

at features @unc.edu.