What’s normal in this video tour of campus is a student guide walking backward. What’s not? The face masks on the crew who streamed it live, the eerie quiet of a usually bustling campus, and a visit with the chancellor — in his socks.
Undergraduate Admissions and Strategic Communications teamed up to create the live tour for admitted students on . If it wasn’t for the COVID-19 pandemic, thousands would have been visiting campus in person before the May 1 deadline to accept offers of admission.
Serving as guide was lively senior Victor Reyes, who has been leading campus tours since his freshman year and is currently sheltering in Davis. “That I was able to do this for students, it’s very rewarding,” said the biological sciences major from the Los Angeles area. As a student admissions advisor, he also answers email questions from admitted students.
The tour, now available as a , had nearly 15,000 views on its first day and is among campus efforts — like Aggie Experience Live! — to help admitted students make one of their first important life decisions while under stay-at-home orders.
As Reyes led the 90-minute tour, he talked about his °ϲĻϢ Davis experience, offered tips and took questions from Instagram viewers on topics from Greek Life to housing for transfer students.
At the end, Chancellor Gary S. May — just from a Zoom meeting and without shoes — welcomed viewers into the grassy courtyard of his official residence and answered questions from Reyes.
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