by Presley Hughes, reporter
MOBILE, Ala.—Thursday, October 24, marked the start of college touring for some of the 48 Fairhope seniors and juniors attending. Pirates spent their day touring the South Alabama campus and got the details on what it’s like to be a Jaguar.
Students started their days at 7:45 a.m. with a private charter bus trip. Upon arrival, the young learners ate complementary Chick-fil-a and heard presentations on why South could be a good next step.
University President Josiah Bonner joined students on the bus tour and shared his personal thoughts about the college.
“Today is a very special day for the students but especially for me. It always warms my heart to see young people interested in our college and hungry for the knowledge it can provide for them. South has a loving feel in its community and it can provide so much for the students’ futures,” Bonner said.
The tour consisted of multiple small bus rides through the campus. On this specific tour, students saw facilities including the nursing, sports and engineering buildings. The tour stopped first at the nursing building.
“Nursing and engineering are very different in nature but alike in the sense that they can provide the students with a thirst for knowledge and a wanting to help others,” said Amy Adams, Assistant Professor of Adult Health Nursing. “We get thousands of students every year coming to the nursing and engineering programs, looking to help others in their own ways.”
While touring the engineering building, students learn about the segments within the engineering program. Advisors often gave pop quizzes to touring students to see if the information of the tour had stuck with them.
“I love to give students pop quizzes on the different sections engineering offers,” said Derik Wolfe, Director of Academic advising. “Students often forget that engineering is not just robots and circuit boards but it can also be space engineering and traveling. Quizzing them can help engrave the information into their brains so they remember the options we offer.”
After eating from the dining hall, students saw one of three freshman dorm rooms that are available for all incoming freshmen. The rooms consisted of two different bed types, a desk for each student and a vanity and private bathroom per room. A resident advisor [RA], remains available all hours of the day to provide safety, advise and keep the rooms clean within the freshman buildings.
“An RA is extremely important to the college community, especially for incoming freshmen,” Bonner said. “RAs are upperclassmen that provide much needed assistance and advice to our new students and they keep the buildings in order. Many freshmen believe that RAs are pointless but, in reality, RAs are an important part of the college experience and we would not be able to function without them.”
The tour ended in the football stadium with students and tour guides taking pictures together with the university’s mascots, SouthPaw and Miss Pawla the Jaguars.
