Piedmont University’s tight-knit culture is what brings many students to the small school in the mountains of North Georgia. For Undergraduate Admissions Director Chelsea Wilkes, the culture is everything. The Habersham resident graduated from Piedmont in spring of 2012 with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education. The school’s allure drew her to apply for a position within the Undergraduate Admissions office.
“I love sharing Piedmont with other people, and I get to do that every day,” said Wilkes. “My role is to create an experience that students will not forget when they visit Piedmont. I enjoy helping students decide where they want to go to college and making those dreams come true.”
Wilkes helps to run Piedmont’s Team Ambassadors, MANE, and SAIL programs. Team Piedmont Ambassadors bridge the gap between the school and prospective students. They help graduating high schoolers through their application process and employ the students who assist with guided tours. Additionally, they work events like Preview Piedmont and orientation.
SAIL, or the Start, Achieve, Impact and Lead program hosts a three-day long cabin retreat where upperclassmen are paired with incoming freshmen, helping them adjust to meeting new people. SAIL navigators check in with their voyagers frequently during their first semester.
MANE, or Mentor and Navigate Entry program run the summer orientation events and meet with incoming freshmen for the first few days of the semester to ensure that they are adjusting well. Senior Leo Forero joined MANE in the spring of his junior year.
“A friend of mine suggested I apply because he had a good experience, so I tried it out. Chelsea made me feel comfortable and she was the type of person I could go to with my problems,” said Forero. “When I was having a tough time last year, she made time to help me through them. To this day, she asks me how I am even though she’s not my boss anymore.”
Though Forero is in his senior year, he reminisces on his experiences with his MANE leader and his status as an incoming freshman.
“My MANE leader helped me but I barely got to see him. The upperclassmen on my team were the ones who stepped up and helped me the most,” he said. ”My teammates, classmates and professors are my second family. I’m glad that I have this many amazing people to lean on if I need help. They really do make me feel safe.”
For Wilkes, engaging with the Piedmont community is the best part of her job. As a mother and “office mom” as her coworkers love to call her, the ability to create a safe and comfortable space for people to be who they are is of utmost importance.
“I have always had a passion for working with students and teaching. In this role, I get to do both. During training sessions, I teach our current student leaders how to form relationships, connect and mentor,” said Wilkes. “When I see our current students being a mentor to our freshmen, it makes me happy to know that this is teaching how to be a leader, but also help others, which is what we need more of in the world.”
Forero spoke about how much he loved MANE. For him, being able to connect with students and being able to make college feel less daunting for incoming freshmen was a plus. Though Forero is an athlete, there are many students that are not. Those students come in without a built-in community and making sure that those students feel just as welcome as the student athletes do is important.
“One of the things I love most about Piedmont is the community,” said Wilkes. “No matter what, there will always be someone there to help you.”
