Nicolet College selects 2022-23 Student Ambassadors

Nicolet College has presented its highest student honor to Michael Giudilli and Alyssa Damewood, naming each as a Student Ambassador for the 2022-23 academic year. 

Selecting from an “incredibly talented and motivated group of nominees, Michael and Alyssa rose to the top,” said Erika Warning-Meyer, Nicolet vice president of Enrollment and Student Affairs. 

"Both are very deserving and I’m confident they’ll do a great job representing Nicolet.” 

Students are first nominated for the honor by a Nicolet staff member and then selected for the position after going through an interview process. 

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Giudilli, a Rhinelander resident, will serve as the Nicolet District Student Ambassador and represent the college at Wisconsin Technical College System statewide events. 

“This is an incredible honor and I am very thankful to have been selected for the Nicolet Student Ambassador position,” said Giudilli, who is in the college’s Nursing program. 

“I really want to give back to Nicolet and the community by letting them know about the many great opportunities Nicolet creates for both students and community members. Attending Nicolet has been a very positive experience for me and I want other people know that it can also be for them as well.” 

He moved to the Northwoods from Maine, where he was a science and math teacher for 10 years at the Cobscook Institute. He is also an Advanced Emergency Medical Technician and a licensed Maine guide with extensive experience in wilderness medicine and first aid. 

The decision to move was primarily motivated by his ​wife's acceptance of a position with the US Forest Service in Rhinelander. At first Giudilli related that he felt a bit lost upon finding himself in a new place with limited connections. 

“I knew I wanted to continue my education in health care after moving and discovering that I could do that at Nicolet, so close to home and in such a beautiful setting, was a huge relief,” said Giudilli, who also works full time at the Aspirus Rhinelander Hospital. 

“It’s been a fabulous, very positive experience. It’s important to me that educational institutions strive to promote diversity and inclusivity while breaking down barriers and working to solve societal problems. That’s not something that happens at all institutions of higher education, but it’s clear to me that Nicolet prioritizes these important initiatives.” 

Giudilli was nominated for the position by Nicolet Nursing Instructor Dilya St. Louis.  

“We are thrilled to have him in our Nursing program,” St. Louis said. “And I truly believe that his compassion, knowledge, intelligence, friendliness, and an ability to intelligently deliver his ideas and thoughts would make him an outstanding Nicolet College Student Ambassador. He loves helping students who are struggling and he does it in such nice way that other students don't feel intimidated and are actually asking him for help.” 

Giudilli will represent Nicolet at the Wisconsin Technical College Ambassador Leadership Development Conference and Banquet April 21 and 22 in the Wisconsin Dells. 

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Alyssa Damewood will serve as the Nicolet College Foundation Student Ambassador. The Rhinelander resident is in the Business Management associate degree program at Nicolet. 

“I didn’t even know I had been nominated for the position so, yes, I was both very surprised and very honored to be selected as the Foundation Student Ambassador,” Damewood said. 

In that position Damewood said her goal is to serve as a champion for the Foundation and spread the word about the great opportunities the Foundation creates for students. 

“I think that there’s a mindset among a lot of students that they don’t deserve a scholarship or that they won’t qualify,” she said. “I want to dispel that mindset and let students know they are deserving and yes, in all likelihood you may qualify to receive a scholarship.” 

As a scholarship recipient, she said receiving one goes beyond just the money aspect. 

“The financial assistance of getting a scholarship is definitely a huge help, but it’s so much more than that,” she said. “It’s also an acknowledgement from the Foundation that you are worth this, you deserve this. It really does give you a good feeling and that they really do believe in you and your goals.” 

What made her selection even more surprising is that Damewood is attending Nicolet entirely online and had only online interactions with her instructors and other Nicolet staff. 

Still, her positive personality and strong abilities shone through for the team of nominators from Nicolet, which included Ellen Mathein, dean of Business and Entrepreneurship, Curt Drumm, Business Management/Entrepreneurship instructor, and Sara Tienhaara, success coach.  

“Alyssa is an extremely strong and motivated student,” the team wrote in their nomination. “She has set goals for herself and impresses her faculty members as she works through their classes. Alyssa understands what it takes to be successful and holds herself accountable.” 

For more information about Nicolet, call the college at (715) 365-4493.