<p>My daughter recently applied to be a Gold Key guide to give tours of Smith to prospies and parents. She heard on Monday that she was accepted. She's excited and honored and her training is Saturday! What I love about the Gold Key guides is that they're not paid as are tour guides at many LACs; the students do it because they love the school and they want to share their enthusiasm and knowledge. So perhaps some of you prospies will have her as a tour guide or an overnight hostess--that's a fun thought!</p>
<p>Careful, being a Gold Key Guide is the gateway drug to spending too much time helping prospies on College Confidential after you graduate… </p>
<p>:-) I joke (kind of…) Congrats to your D! I loved being a GKG, and now she’ll get to go to fun GK teas and when she graduates she can wear her Gold Key pin with pride on her robe!</p>
<p>So true, SmithieandProud! I spent two years as a Gold Key board member because I liked being a guide so much. I miss it.</p>
<p>Congrats to your D, Carolyn!</p>
<p>Congratulations to your D, Carolyn. Knowing so much about Smith can lead to speaking engagements…why, when I start talking about Smith, sometimes I’m invited to speak elsewhere! </p>
<p>(I was with a colleague who has a daughter in 9th grade. We were meeting with a potential client who is a Smithie and she asked him, “Has he told you about why your daughter should consider Smith?” He just rolled his eyes…she was <em>way</em> late to that party. It’s his wife I need to talk to; apparently she’s in charge of all the academic stuff.)</p>
<p>My daughter loves giving tours. They remind her of her first visit to the campus and how she first fell in love with Smith, thanks to the tour guide, whoever she may have been.</p>
<p>That was the good part about giving tours for me as well. When I came to visit Smith I had been totally obsessing over it online and my very first impression was…slightly less halcyon than my imaginary Smith had been. In the brochures it was glossy and beautiful and in real life it was…real? But then I went on my tour, and my guide was so amazing, and she was a theatre/English double major which at the time is what I thought I would be, and she took me on this amazing tour of the theatre building and I pretty much fell in love. </p>
<p>A lot of people think it’s weird to be a guide because you don’t get paid, we’re all volunteer and it’s a bit of a time committment. But I got such a high out of being that first connection with Smith that made people love it, and I really looked forward to my tours and had fun doing them. Also, it forced me to clean my room at least once a week. So that was good too.</p>
<p>S&P, the opposite happened to my daughter: she did not even want to see Smith (“Not another women’s college!”), and I had to force her to visit. Within minutes of beginning the tour, she loved Smith. </p>
<p>The tour guide as first impression should not be underestimated. I’ve known more high school students who decided to apply (or not) based on their gut evaluation of the tour guide. Crazy, yes, but true.</p>
<p>MWFN, yes, I think the reason my daughter feels so honored is that she knows she represents Smith, she’s the first impression. The memory of college tours is still fresh; some were excellent and some not.</p>
<p>S&P, room-cleaning is good, too! :)</p>
<p>Well, let’s just say if I wasn’t a gold key guide i probably would have done a lot less laundry, washed fewer dishes, and made my bed um…never. In four years. So it’s a motivator. You want people to have a good impression of the living spaces and that starts with a clean room.</p>
<p>Congrats to your D, CarolynB!</p>
<p>My D (class of '06) was a Gold Key tour guide and the experience was good for her. (And yes, it did mean she had to tidy up her room once a week but I supect that meant throwing things into the closet.)</p>
<p>I recall my D telling me of a special tea with the college president held in the spring to thank the Gold Key guides. Apparently the president’s house has a large collection of special china tea cups donated by alums from all over. My D really enjoyed that occasion.</p>
<p>She would also get nice thank-you notes from prospies whom she had hosted, and felt really good when some would commit to Smith.</p>
<p>Yes, the President has an amazing teacup collection, each one is different. She likes to tell this story about how when she moved in to the President’s house, they had been doing cleaning or renovation or something and all of the teacups were out on the table with all of the saucers, and she spent an entire evening matching up cups and saucers. The President’s teas are awesome and they are the only teas on campus where you can get cucumber tea sandwiches and hot raisin scones with jam and butter.</p>
<p>The President also has a pretty complete set of “Smith College china,” which was a china pattern they used to make with Smith buildings and locations etched on it. Also bought by alums.</p>
<p>S&P, the image of Carol Christ working on matching up cups and saucers is wonderful. I can imagine I wouldn’t have been able to resist doing the same either to see if they all came out even! The “Smith College china” sounds awesome. Well, it looks like my daughter has some delightful experiences to anticipate–a lovely tea and possibly thank you notes and satisfaction when some commit to Smith. Maybe even a clean room! 
Thank you for rounding out the picture for me.</p>
<p>Congratulations to your D! It’s so wonderful to see people who are passionate. And I entirely agree that true enthusiasm from the tour guide is instantly recognizable from the “Let’s-get-it-over-with-because it’s-my- job” variety</p>