Carolina Alumni Review - May/June 2009

Students
‘I Think It Fits Me’
Shadow Days gives prospective students a peek at life at UNC

BETH MECHUM

Ronak Desai says he is a sports fanatic with a head for business, so Carolina has a lot he is looking for in a university.

But the high school junior from Georgia is exploring many options, which is one reason he wanted to attend the GAA’s Order of the Bell Tower Shadow Day in April. Shadow Day was started in 2001 as a way to reach out to students from parts of the

state or country that usually

Sophomore Chelsea Phillips showed Georgia high school student Ronak Desai around campus on OBT Shadow Day.

aren’t heavily recruited. The

OBT serves as the student arm of the GAA and as the official student ambassadors to UNC.

After a short admissions presentation by Kendra Lawrence ’ 95, assistant director of undergraduate admissions, Desai and the nine other high school students who attended were paired with an OBT member to shadow around campus.

It was a great day for them to get the chance to follow a college student around just two days removed from the men’s basketball team winning the national championship. Campus was abuzz with activity and splashed with more Carolina blue than usual.

“I thought this would be better than a normal college tour experience where they just feed you information,” Desai said. “I wanted the student experience, so I could get the truth and have more freedom.”

Desai had plenty he wanted to know. He asked his ambassador, sophomore Chelsea

Phillips, where the best libraries for studying were, where she “chills out” between classes and how important Greek life is to the University.

Phillips replied candidly but made it clear that each student has a different personal experience and the best part about attending UNC is finding your own niche.

She gave Desai a quick tour around campus, and Desai laughed at the creative places students find to nap between classes. He was especially interested in seeing the inside of Wilson Library. After the tour, Desai went to a Spanish class with Phillips.

Meanwhile, the 13 parents who participated met their students’ OBT hosts for the day, followed by a session with Lawrence on admissions, had free time to explore Franklin Street, had a roundtable lunch with other parents and then heard professors’ perspectives on UNC. The two groups reconvened for a joint session on study abroad then split again, parents for a guided tour and the students to hear from a panel of current students.

Desai said he was grateful for his inside look at student life at Carolina and thinks it’s very possible he’ll be back.

“I definitely want to go to UNC more after I’ve seen it,” Desai said. “Everything is so up-to-date, and I love the feel of a big school. I think it fits me.”

Return on Investment

The Order of the Bell Tower will track the students who attended Shadow Day to see if they apply and are admitted to UNC. If they are admitted, they will be given a chance to apply for a scholarship named for Angie McKinney Jones ’01, Shadow Day founder. The winner gets a one-time $500 scholarship and an automatic interview to be a member of the group.