The Great Desk HappeningsSUNY New Paltz Welcome Center Newsletter Fall 2014

A quick update on whats going on when youre not on shift

A couple of days ago, Colin and Sara had the pleasure of having President Christian stop by the desk. He complimented us on our excellent phone etiquette and emphasized how essential we are to the campus. I just found out from Emily that hes been coming by frequently and has been saying nothing but great things about the staff and our responsibilities.Aja and Sara got a special delivery from Jeanne Quenzer during their shift on Monday. She is the secretary over at the Athletic and Wellness Center. Quenzer was nice enough to type up all the

extensions of people who work there because she felt it would help and also she loves our phone etiquette with her. When it was delivered, the sheet was laminated and hole punched so we can put it in the information binder. Aja called her and thanked her immediately. Now we can better transfer calls around that department.Lastly, we had Nicki and Kristen graciously give up their time this past Saturday and manned the desk for Parent and Family weekend. Lots of parents came to the Welcome Center for help and they left saying how helpful our Welcome Center is.

After three semesters of trying to get access to this system, we have finally done it! For those of you who are not yet familiar with the software, it has every single event happening on campus documented in one information system. Usually, the student assistant managers in the Student Union access it daily to check on rooms. Now, we can immediately help callers with any questions about events happening on campus without having to transfer them. Already, we have had multiple departments thanking us for alleviating stress when they have a major event going on

We finally got Ad Astra for the desk!The Ad Astra Chronicles

Make sure you see this screen every time you log into to the software. You may get the wrong information if you dont.

**Using a Windows OS computer for Ad Astra**

Make sure Ad Astra Schedule is installed on your computer

Log into Ad Astra

Change your Ad Astra password if this is the first time using Ad Astra

Our number one need as a staff is let people know that we are a center that is specifically catered to help whenever help is needed. We are a major SUNY school, so it is understandable that the money the government gives us goes towards bigger needs. We are a behind the scenes department, but we know that we dont get as many calls and visitors as we should. We need to think of creative and efficient ways to let people know of our important presence. Why not shed more light on a place that gives the first impression of the school?

Bringing Awareness to the CenterHiring New Staff Members for Spring 2015

As you are all aware, Shana has decided to hired new staff members, as a total of 4 people will be leaving us at the end of the year due to early graduation and study abroad.

This is critical in order for the Welcome Center to be fully functioning during business hours. Additionally, the bigger the staff, the more even hours get distributed.

She is looking specifically for upperclassmen in any major and race does not matter at all. That being said, if there are already an education major on staff, Shana will tend to look for other majors just so the staff is diverse as possible.

We need the applicant pool to be as big as possible so Shana can have options when choosing new staff member.

Things to keep in mind when spreading the word about the Welcome Center hiring: Welcome Center employees must be warm, professional, well spoken and courteous with outstanding customer service skills. They must also have thorough knowledge of campus building/office locations, academic programs we offer as well as cultural offerings and campus events.

Important Dates: Application Due date: November 3 Round 1 Interviews: November 6 - November 14 Round 2 Interviews: November 17 - November 21 Applicants will be notified by Wednesday, November 26 Chosen applicants will be expected to complete 2 training shifts December 1 - December 12

We need to take more action on different social media platforms. It is crucial for us to do so because our center needs more awareness. Facebook and Instagram would be our two main accounts we need to take charge of. With the Facebook page, we would use it more as a place to highlight different departments on campus that cater to common calls we receive everyday. Also, we would highlight our staff accomplishments. With the Instagram, we could take pictures of our workday and some upcoming events on campus. Please contact Shana if you are interested in being in charge of these accounts.

Social Media Presence The social media department for the college recently created a hashtag #npsocial in order to gather all social media happenings on campus into one tagboard. Again, we can gather the Facebook and Instagram posts under this hashtag in order to bring awareness to a bigger audience on campus.

The Digital Age is upon us.

We should strive to receive more responsibilities to lighten the load of the department on campus. At the Welcome Center, we only transfer calls and help walk-in visitors. It can sometimes get boring and eventually, we will feel unimportant.According to the SUNY Plattsburgh information desk website, they sell tickets, distribute mail, sell transportation tickets, sell magazines, and plenty more. Again, this goes back to receiving more responsibilities. I feel as though we can definitely step our game up and prove to the school that were just as important as any other department on campus.

Lets get Responsible!

Contact Shana Circe at circes@newpaltz.edu for any questions about whats coming up this semester.