One of the main and most common health policies that the university has been enforcing is the wearing of face coverings and staying 6-feet apart from one another, along with others. Starting in mid-September, the Laker Outreach Team (included within the Recreation and Wellness Division of Student Affairs) started to give out face masks and t-shirts to students on the Allendale Campus.

To follow guidelines and be as safe as possible, ambassadors have been following the “Staying Safe” order and only working on campus for the time being.

Mike Przydzial, Interim Director said, “Our Laker Community Ambassadors are currently focused on rewarding students who are observed to be in compliance with university health policies with free items on campus as a ‘thank you’ for doing the right thing like wearing a face covering, staying 6 feet apart from others, and completing the daily self-assessment.”

So far, students have been given numerous items for staying safe while they are on campus. Ambassadors have given out a large amount of; t-shirts, face coverings, hand sanitizer, and magnets – all GVSU branded so students can continuously show their Laker pride. All of these items have been provided to students through different partners included in the Division of Student Affairs. The Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department and the Ottawa County Public Health has been generous in donating even more items that will be distributed to students

The whole program has been started and kept going with great effort from many organizations on campus.

The university has also been pressing the educational values of this ongoing pandemic throughout the beginning of this semester,

“As we continue to grow our program, ambassadors will provide more educational resources rather than just providing rewards for being in compliance,” said Przydzial.

This effort was started when the “Staying in Place” order went into effect on Sept. 17. Everyone that is involved in the outreach program is hopeful that these rewards and educational tips will encourage students to continue to follow health and safety guidelines. Since the ambassadors have been present around campus, they have come in contact with almost 2,000 students over the past few weeks.

GVSU is hopeful that students will continue to lead by example and follow the current guidelines in place for the state of Michigan.