The interest meeting for Jefferson’s Partnership Fund Student Ambassadors Program was held on Wednesday, Oct. 2. Alumni Coordinator Samantha Krause and Development Coordinator Miriam Lamoreaux discussed the application process, as well as qualifying requirements. The Student Ambassadors Program is an opportunity for students to give back to Jefferson through sharing their knowledge of Jefferson with donors and the community. Students do this through giving tours to Jefferson donors and alumni, organizing STEM outreach opportunities, and writing thank-you notes for contributions. 

“We also use student ambassadors for parent tours. Earlier in the summer, before school started, we had the freshman parent reception, where parents came and learned about the partnership fund. We had some student ambassadors who gave tours and talked to parents about what their students were going into,” Lamoreaux said. 

At the interest meeting, Lamoreaux and Krause discussed application requirements. Several requirements were as follows: one teacher letter of recommendation, good academic standing, and a short application form. Jefferson sophomores and older were encouraged to apply, which sparked the interest of several students. 

“I had read the ION posting and was curious about the program. I actually didn’t know if I was going to apply until I went to the interest meeting,” senior Cathy Liang said. 

Other students grew more interested during the interest meeting as well, particularly for giving tours.

“I’m really looking forward to giving school tours and showing people around our senior labs. I think they’re something really unique to TJ. Also, I know a lot of the alumni and corporate outreach really helps fund projects that connect directly with TJ-hosted events, like Techstravaganza and HackTJ, which wouldn’t be possible without the support of TJPF,” senior Jessica Chen said. 

Although a few of the students did not know as much about the program, some felt that it would provide a good opportunity to represent Jefferson and its values. 

“It seems to me like this [Jefferson’s Ambassador Program] kind of runs behind-the-scenes a lot of the time, but I think it’s valuable to keep a student presence when TJ’s represented to the wider community,” Liang said.