STUDENT ADMISSIONS AMBASSADORS

By: Mikayla Vetter

This fall SAA has been busy in and outside of the groups planned gatherings! We kicked off
the fall semester with Jennys back-to-school barbeque and ended the semester with Pauls annual Christmas party.
To start off the semester, SAA members got together at the Connolly household meeting
the new members and eating everyones favoritethe party potatoes. We also kept things interesting this year by taking part in the ice bucket challenge which ended in a water fight with Bart
against Jennys children.
Of course we continued the traditions in meetings with our dressing up for homecoming
and Halloween. The most clever costume for Halloween went to Colby Campbell for dressing up
as the one and only Paul Sapp, with a very accurate representation including his gray hair! The
best pair went to SAA seniors and couple Emily Newton and Nick Stanford who dressed up as
peanut butter and jelly. The last award to be handed out was for the scariest costume and that
went to new member Zach Lillquist who dressed up as Sarah, the ew girl!
Before we knew it the semester was already over and it was time to celebrate the end of a
busy semester. So SAA members kept the Christmas tradition going by attending Christmas festivities on Main Street followed by Paul Sapp's Christmas party hosted by the exec team! It was a
great time hanging out with
friends, filled with lots of laughter, cheer and ugly Christmas
sweaters to bring in the holiday season!

NEW MEMBERS.
By: Daniel Vorwerk

Andrea Thoene, Sr.

Bailey Jimmison, Sr.

Brandon Schiltz, Jr.

Dustin Toale, Jr.

Hannah Lodge, Jr.

Jana Johnson, So.

Kate Costigan, Jr.

Kelsey Rogers, Jr.

Kyle Polzin, So.

Madi Gavin, So.

Maddy ODonnell, So.

Maddie Twedt, Sr.

NEW MEMBERS.
By: Daniel Vorwerk

Margarita Meza, So.

Matthew Klein, So.

Mikayla Vetter, So.

Natalie Rork, Jr.

Olivia Steffen, Jr.

Parker Bennett, So.

Stormie Johanson, Jr.

Tara Jackson, Jr.

Tori Settani, So.

Zach Lillquist, So.

HOMECOMING.
By: Molly Norman
This semester, SAA has had a blast participating in Homecoming activities, hanging out,
and even serving the community! During Homecoming week, it is known that SAA is pretty tough
competition at Pride Cry every year, and this year, we did not disappoint! We once again paired
up with CATS and dressed in our purple, gold, and nerd/superhero accessories to match the Superhero theme of Homecoming week. Competition was tough but we advanced to the final
round on Friday night where we came in second to Camp Adventure.
Following tradition, SAA Execs hosted a SAA tailgate for current members and alumni! SAA
had a tent set up for tailgating on Saturday and invited current members and alumni alike to
hang out before the game. We ate food and laughed and had enjoyed hanging out with one
another after a fun week full of homecoming events.
The day following all the tailgating gets a little messy, though and we followed the theme
of the week and suited up as Panther superheroes and set out on our final homecoming missionto conquer the trash. We walked all around campus picking up leftover Hershey Kiss wrappers by
the campanile and remnants of what used to be taco dip and tortilla chip from tailgating.

MEETING AWARDS.
By: Emily Bachmeier
At each SAA meeting, there are a number of awards given out to members of the group.
Some are serious, others are funny but all of the awards have the purpose of recognizing a member for something they did, said, or something that happened since the last meeting.
Panther of the Week (POW) awards are submitted by members of SAA about other members to comment on a job well done in or outside of SAA or thank them for something good that
happened. These awards, along with Bonehead of the Week (BOW) awards, are anonymously
read aloud during meetings. BOW awards are submitted about other SAA members to comment
on things done without thinking, or face palm moments; such as tripping while giving a tour.
One POW and one BOW are selected each meeting and awarded a certificate and Admissions
prize, such as a sticker or water bottle. In addition, a Panther of the Month (POM) award is given
out each month to a member who has proven to be an exceptional Panther.
A new addition to the awards given at meetings this year is the Top Gun Award. Created
and implemented by our Vice President of Community Outreach, Rachel Carmen, this award
aims to recognize SAA members who have shown exceptional service each week. The Top Gun
award relates to the service sector of the SAA mission and is awarded to a member who has
gone above and beyond in service, whether it is to the community, the university, or SAA. An example of a Top Gun award nomination might be someone who jumped in when Jenny needed
last-minute assistance or someone who really stepped up and assisted another member in a significant way. This award has been a special addition to the meeting awards and truly helps embody the mission of SAA.

HANGING OUT WITH SAA.

By: Brandon Schiltz
SAA found many new and creative ways to connect and build relationships among its
members this semester. Most of these activities were activities that took place outside of our
regular meeting times.
At the beginning of the year, Bart Frederick hosted a bonfire where many of the members
began to connect with each other. With almost half of the group consisting of new members this
semester, this was a really cool way to get to know some new members while hanging out
around a fire.
Some of the other get-togethers have include camping at Big Woods Lake, having movie
nights at somebodys room or apartment, attending athletic events as a group, and going out to
eat. In addition to these, hang out times, members are showing great support of other members
in their other endeavors. Things like attending Rishi Kolusus jazz concerts, watching Colby Campbell, Jacob Ferguson, or Morgan Kramer in the Christmas Glee Club Concert, or Jefferson Fosbender and Jordy Brown in their improv shows, ambassadors are supporting each other in everything they do and making time to out of their busy days to hang out with SAA.

FACEBOOK CREEPIN.
By: Rhydian Talbot
In a craze that broke out across newsfeeds faster than a 13-year-olds acne, preteen pictures of SAA members resurfaced on social media through comments and plenty of likes. Senior,
Rachel Carmen, kick-started the trip down memory lane after a post-retreat bonfire in early fall,
where members reminisced on embarrassing tween moments. It started out as me just creeping
through old photos because I thought it would be funny, but then all of a sudden I had people
actually requesting that I look through their old photos and leave comments, Carmen said.
For weeks, images of SAA members, circa-2008, resurfaced as Carmen and fellow SAAers
sleuthed through old photos. Bowl cuts, chubby cheeks, and braces appeared in droves as only
the most incriminating of Ambassadors photos sprung to the top of newsfeeds. Creeping became a sport during late-night study breaks, where commenters would embark on a rampage of
responses poking good-natured fun at the former faces of the faces of UNI.
The flashback attacks rose in popularity throughout the semester, spurring a response to the
member that began the craze. Senior, Morgan Kramer, contacted Carmens mother for exclusive
shots of her then-preteen daughter that were mysteriously absent from Facebook.
The initial creeping craze may have faded, but humbling photos of Ambassadors former
years still linger in the depths of Facebook albums. These photos will surely resurface alongside the
welcome of new members of SAA Spring 2015 as we learn about each other, present and past.

SERVICE TO CF.
By: Molly Norman
Because we all did such a fabulous job picking up trash around campus after Homecoming, we decided to set our sites on something a little bit off campus and took on the highway to
get our community looking as spotless as campus. The group that went out was small but mighty
and collected many bags of trash in order to help out the Cedar Falls community that gives so
much back to us as Panthers.
Finally, our members decided to volunteer at the Pink Ribbon Run in Cedar Falls. Bundled
up and ready to brave the cold, our Ambassadors did such a fabulous job that early morning
that they even got a mention in the Waterloo Courier! Handing out water and offering a word of
encouragement to those participating might seem like something small to us, but getting that
kind of recognition really goes to show the kind of appreciation it brings.
As a group, it is so great to watch comradery grow through doing activities held by the
school, as well as trying to better our world together. We are a group of ambassadors, but we do
so, so much more than that on a daily basis and that is what being in this group is really all about.

PANTHER OF THE MONTH.

By: Daniel Vorwerk
Joe Noonan, Sr.
September POM.

Kyle Polzin, So.

October POM.

This person always

has a smile on his
face and is willing to
help anyone and
everyone with
something no matter what. He is the
epitome of what it
means to be a
good ambassador.

Beyond panels, this

person is one of the
brightest people
around campus and
consistently shows
up to support other
SAA members in
their endeavors.

Bart Frederick, Sr.

November POM.

Morgan Nibe, Sr.

December POM.

This ambassador is
so supportive of
everybody in SAA in
the things they do.
He knows the true
meaning of being
an Ambassador,
and he represents
this University exceptionally well.

For 4 years, this ambassador has served

the admissions office in many ways.
Her smile, pleasant
attitude, and kind
heart are what
make her an amazing ambassador.

BIG/LIL.
By: Justin Niday
This year, Jordy Brown, Vice President of Membership Development, was in charge of the
big and little program that SAA uses every year to help new members integrate themselves into
the group. However, Jordy did not just run the program, but transformed it into not just a way of
integrating new members but encouraging them to develop creativity and other applicable
skills. Jordy has taken a program that had grown complacent with the usual and has breathed
new life into it.
Traditionally, the big and little program has allowed new members to meet current members, integrate themselves with the group, and compete in weekly challenges against other
pairs. This year, Jordy has revolutionized the way challenges have been set up. These new challenges have included finding a place on campus that has never been photographed, creating
a music video with your partner, or even as crazy as finding a squirrel on campus, naming it, and
taking a selfie with it!
These new big and little challenges have proven very successful this year and I have noticed new member participation in meeting is higher than any year prior.
With over 20 new members this semester, it wasnt an easy task for Jordy, but he succeeded in making this group tight nit. The new members have developed quickly and now that
their first semester is over everyone is excited to see what next semester holds.

FORMAL.
By: Rhydian Talbot
Hopping aboard the U.S.S.A.A., Ambassadors got down at the annual Fall Formal on Nov. 21. The
nautical-themed event was again held at the Fox Ridge Golf Course in Dike, IA.
The annual formal provides members with a time to celebrate the close of a semester
through camaraderie and classy attire. Jordy Brown, Vice President of Membership Development, oversaw the creation and implementation of the successful event, driven by the nights
purpose. Formal is a great time for SAA members to come together and simply appreciate their
peers by being fancy and dancing the night away, Brown said.
Attendees enjoyed a catered dinner over good conversation. Following the meal, the
dance floor opened, and seniors Nick Stanford and Colby Campbell served as DJs for the evening. Event-goers got down to hits past and present, grooving to top hits across the decades.
When Abbas Dancing Queen played as the evening came to a close, advisors Paul Sapp and
Jenny Connolly took to the center of the dance floor to the delight of all in attendance.
Ambassadors were allowed to share the evening with plus-one guests. The guest list allowed members to show off significant others and close friends, enabling SAA to invite, inform,
and inspire even outside of khaki and purple polo events. The formal also brought back some
familiar faces. SAA alums Eadie Marie Schettler (13) and Sara Rockow (13) accompanied current members, serving as a reminder of the connections to SAA that outlast graduation.

SAYIN GOODBYE.
By: Daniel Vorwerk
It is the worst part of the year, but this December, we had to say goodbye to 5 of our members. In total, they contributed 238 hours of weekly tours to the group during their time in SAA.

Amber Irlmeier, Sr.

Emily Newton, Sr.

Morgan Kramer, Sr.

Justin Niday, Jr.

Morgan Nibe, Sr.

SAA IN PICTURES.