CSUSB holds student welcome Ask Me! campaign as a drive-thru

Cal State San Bernardino’s annual Ask Me! Campaign to welcome students and answer their questions as part of the start of the fall semester will be held as a three-day drive-thru, starting today Monday, Aug. 24, through Wednesday, Aug. 26, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The event will be located in Parking Lot 2 East on the back side of the CSUSB campus. Students will be required to sign up at the Ask Me! Drive Thru website for a time slot to help manage the number of cars coming in every hour, said Ashley Watterson, first year experience coordinator for the Office of Orientation and First Year Experience (FYE). They hope to attract more than 1,000 students to the three-day event, Watterson said.

The Ask Me! Campaign is typically done with tables set up around the CSUSB campus staffed by university volunteers to welcome students back, as most of the information provided is directional since students aren’t sure where buildings are located, Watterson said. But this year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced CSUSB to go virtual for the entire spring and summer session and now the fall semester, most students will not be on campus.

“The incoming class did not have the same in-person yield events or orientation programs, taking away the personal and live Q&A and shared experiences of CSUSB’s current students. Most of them have also not been to campus (in a while or at all) and have not felt a true sense of belonging as a new college student at CSUSB,” Watterson said.

“We decided to do the drive-thru to not only make new students feel welcome by getting some of the free stuff they would have received at our in-person events, but students have also been communicating only through email, phone or via Zoom,” Watterson said. “By offering a drive-thru, we can answer students’ remaining questions live so they can get an immediate response, rather than waiting 24-72 hours to hear back. These new students will have faced the toughest transition to college than any other cohort, so it is the least we can do to show we are here for them by answering their questions and giving them CSUSB swag.”

Students driving to Parking Lot 2 East will check in with a staff member and be asked for their name and Coyote ID number. From there they will move to the next point where they will pick up their FYE swag bag and a shareable “snack pack” stuffed by CSUSB’s new dining vendor, Chartwells Higher Education, aka “Yotie Eats.” The drawstring bag will include an “I’m in the Pack” T-shirt, water bottle, pen, stickers, lanyard, face masks and a few marketing materials from FYE, the Office of Undergraduate Studies (UGS), Information Technology Services (ITS), the Career Center and the Division of Student Affairs.  

If they have questions, they will be directed to the second level of the parking structure, where orientation leaders and department representatives from Financial Aid, the Registrar’s Office and Advising will be on hand to answer questions.

Watterson said 100 slots will be available per hour as students will sign up to arrive in 15-minute appointments or slots.

To help maintain social distancing and limit contacts, Risk Management will be supplying the team with masks, gloves, hand sanitizer and cleaning wipes. They will also have two lanes in level one of the parking structure to ensure staff are physically distant.

“Students will be asked to stay in their car as the volunteers (orientation leaders and department staff) will go to the car to answer questions, should they have any,” Watterson said. “Staff will have tablets to look up any necessary information so that we can do our best to address questions live.” 

To sign up for the drive-thru or for more information visit the Office of Orientation and First Year Experience Ask Me! Drive Thru website.