{"id":42649,"date":"2018-12-05T15:44:42","date_gmt":"2018-12-05T21:44:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=42649"},"modified":"2018-12-05T15:45:04","modified_gmt":"2018-12-05T21:45:04","slug":"road-trips-to-campus-help-give-students-a-clear-picture-of-what-fhsu-has-to-offer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=42649","title":{"rendered":"Road trips to campus help give students a clear picture of what FHSU has to offer"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Diane Gasper-O\u2019Brien <\/strong>
\nUniversity Relations and Marketing <\/em>
\nHaley Gomes wasn\u2019t aware of an overnight visit to Fort Hays State University for high school students, sponsored by the Office of Admissions, when she was searching for colleges to attend four years ago.<\/p>\n

But Gomes, who grew up in Highlands Ranch, Colo. \u2013 part of the Denver metropolitan area \u2013
\nis more than a little excited to tell teenagers about her alma mater now.<\/p>\n

An FHSU admissions counselor in charge of the southern portion of Colorado, Gomes joined other admissions personnel at a two-day event Sunday and Monday that brought Colorado students from their hometowns to campus for a day.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a great way to check out a college for free,\u201d Gomes said. \u201cYou don\u2019t have to stay in a hotel, and you get to meet other kids from Colorado who you don\u2019t already know. I wish I would have heard about this when I was in high school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gomes actually learned about FHSU from someone in her city who had earned a master\u2019s degree from Fort Hays State.<\/p>\n

After checking it out, Gomes decided on Fort Hays State and graduated in 2018 with a bachelor\u2019s degree in organizational leadership. She successfully applied for a position in the admissions office and has been on the road recruiting potential Tigers ever since.<\/p>\n

She and fellow admissions counselor Emi Kniffin, in charge of the northern part of Colorado, stayed overnight with the 42 students in Cunningham Hall Sunday, then helped lead activities all day Monday.<\/p>\n

They both have been busy this semester, traveling the eastern Colorado circuit, attending college fairs and visiting high schools.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter going to all the schools in Colorado, it\u2019s fun to see some students here today,\u201d said Kniffin, who accompanied students on campus tours, visiting their academic departments and other presentations and activities.<\/p>\n

Kniffin moved to northwest Kansas with her fianc\u00e9 in September. Dani Hartung, a former coworker of Kniffin\u2019s at an area elementary school, had taken a job as admissions counselor at FHSU and told Kniffin about another opening.<\/p>\n

Kniffin, who grew up in Wichita and graduated from Baker University in Baldwin City, didn\u2019t know that much about Fort Hays State before she sought out the admissions job.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t know anything about the programs here beforehand, but I found out what a great school Fort Hays State is,\u201d she said. \u201cI love advertising (FHSU) now. I love being able to help students figure out what\u2019s right for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Getting students to campus is key, said Jon Armstrong, interim director of admissions.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of these students have heard of Fort Hays State through our admissions counselors, and this gives them the opportunity to come to visit campus,\u201d he said. \u201cIt provides people an opportunity to see, in person, what Fort Hays State has to offer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Participants ranged from small schools such as Fowler, which has 175 students in grades 7-12, or Mitchell High in Colorado Springs \u2013 whose enrollment of 1,300 is larger than the city of Fowler\u2019s entire population.<\/p>\n

\u201cI definitely want to go here,\u201d said Ty Korngor, who is from Colorado Springs. \u201cI really like the campus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Korngor, who graduated from Mitchell High School this semester, plans to major in marketing and hopes to be on campus at FHSU as early as spring semester 2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey told me I could be really involved here like I was in high school, and I liked that,\u201d said Korngor, who was active in organizations in high school, including yearbook, photography and student government.<\/p>\n

Danielle Pruett from Fowler, in the southeast part of the state, was just as impressed with FHSU.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am involved with FFA in high school and do a lot of competitions,\u201d said Pruett, who wants to major in agricultural business in college. \u201cThis whole experience exceeded what I ever thought it would be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pruett said she decided to make the trip because she grew up in a small town and thought FHSU was smaller than some of the larger schools in Colorado.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like keeping it small,\u201d she said, \u201cand I am so glad I was able to come to this. I made a lot of friends here already, and I hope I get accepted to FHSU. I love it here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pruett said she was hooked after the personal road trip but admitted she was already convinced she was serious about attending FHSU after Gomes\u2019 presentation at her high school.<\/p>\n

Touting all the benefits of attending Fort Hays State comes easy for her, Gomes said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing from a large city and close to the mountains, it was a little bit of a culture shock right at first when I came here,\u201d Gomes said. \u201cBut once you\u2019re here, you get the chance to step out of your comfort zone, become more open minded about things to do in a smaller city.\u201d<\/p>\n

One benefit that gets students\u2019 attention is tuition rates.<\/p>\n

Students coming from states bordering Kansas are able to take advantage of the Contiguous States Resident Tuition Program. That rate is less than half of other non-resident students.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy twin brother\u2019s tuition at a community college in Colorado was more than mine here at Fort Hays State,\u201d Gomes said. \u201cIt\u2019s amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n

While affordability definitely is a plus, Gomes said there are so many other factors \u2013 specifically the wide variety of nationally acclaimed programs and state-of-the-art facilities \u2013 that make FHSU an easy sell to prospective students.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou get a top-notch education here,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Another major feature, Gomes said, is the community connection.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce you get here and see the Hays community, the people of Hays are really a big drawing card, too,\u201d she said. \u201cEveryone has such a good heart. Caring and hard-working is engrained into everywhere you go. It\u2019s the true Midwestern spirit; they\u2019re going to be there for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Colorado road trip was the last of its kind this semester for the admissions office. Students from Wichita, southwest Kansas and eastern Kansas came to campus on similar bus trips. For more information about the road trips or other admissions activities, visit www.fhsu.edu\/admissions<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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