What would you do if you could be the chancellor for a day?That was the question for senior advertising/public relations major Ashley Pierret when she switched places with Chancellor Victor Boschini on Thursday.

“It’s been my best experience at TCU so far,” Pierret said. “The chancellor is a very amazing person, but he’s also very busy. It takes a lot of people to run this university, and I have a better appreciation for that now.”

Boschini also had the opportunity to attend psychology instructor Dianna Newbern’s advanced leadership class with Pierret on Thursday afternoon, Pierret’s only class of the day.

“It’s a great way to meet someone and get to know them a little bit,” Boschini said. “It also helps give me a little better picture of the student experience.”

The Student Foundation sponsors the event every year known as the “Big Switch,” offering a member of the foundation the chance to find out what goes into running a major university.

The foundation was established in 1976 as a service organization with the idea of promoting the overall welfare of the university. Among a number of other worthwhile activities, members of the foundation lead weekly tours around the campus for prospective students, call and thank donors for their gifts to TCU and serve as student hosts at various alumni events.

“It’s a great opportunity for a student to gain an understanding of what happens here,” said Karen Baker, assistant to the chancellor. “When I was in college, I would not have had a clue about what was going on up here. It’s a different view for them.”

Pierret met with several administrators Thursday morning to discuss some of the difference aspects of their jobs and the manners in which they deal with problems or situations that they encounter within their departments.

Among the administrators who met with Pierret during her day as Chancellor were Don Mills, vice chancellor for student affairs; Davis Babb, associate director of athletics; Susan Adams, associate vice chancellor and dean of campus life; and Larry Lauer, vice chancellor for marketing and communication.

After the meeting with the different administrators, Boschini ate lunch with Pierret and a few of her friends in the chancellor’s dining room before accompanying her to Newbern’s class at 12:30.

“I think it’s great that he gets to go to Ashley’s classes,” said junior psychology major Courtney Bohner. “It allows him to identify with the students better.”

Newbern also showed appreciation for Boschini’s interest in the students.

“Chancellor Boschini showed students that he really cares about them as students,” Newbern said. “He was very interested in the leadership topics we discussed in class.”

The switch-up concluded at 2 p.m. Thursday at the end of Newbern’s class.