What are Guiding Stars?
- Guiding Stars is a platform designed to make community onboarding easy
- A network to facilitate connections between newcomers and people
- A program to facilitate connections between newcomers and place
How Does This Process Work?
Easy as 1-2-3
- Meet your Guiding Star (face-to-face, via video chat or a phone call) to get to know each other
- You’ll be invited to at least two networking or community event OR get two emails about your interests
- Your Guiding Star should make THREE connections for you that align with this criteria:
- Personal connections that they think you’ll get along with
- Professional connections for a job
- Volunteer organizations or clubs
What Does a Guiding Star Do, Exactly?
- Answers specific questions about Huntsville, or connects you to those who have them
- Serves as “first connection” to those who move to the community
- Makes connections to things to do, places to see, and people who can help you settle in
How Long After I Fill Out the Form Will I Be Contacted?
We take our time to make sure there is a good match between you and your Guiding Star, and it’s done by a real human, so it may take up to a week before you hear back about your Guiding Star request.
What If I Change My Mind About Wanting A Guiding Star?
No problem! All you have to do is send an email to
[email protected] and ask to be removed from the list.
Is My Guiding Star Going To Get Me a Job?
Your Guiding Star can connect you to people in their network who may be hiring, but they cannot guarantee you an interview or a role at any company, including their own.
What do you need all this information for, and who gets to use it?
We ask the minimum number of questions we can to make a good match with one of our Guiding Stars. The ONLY people who have access to this data are the staff of ASmartPlace, and the two vendors who helped design this website. None of this data will ever be sold, used for sales or recruitment purposes, or shared with anyone outside of these organizations. You can request your data be permanently deleted at any time by emailing
[email protected].
What kinds of things can I ask my Guiding Star for?
Your Guiding Star is trained to answer a variety of different questions about the area, such as providing information on schools, things to do, which neighborhoods or areas might be a good fit for you and your family, and where to look to answer other questions you might have. Their goal is to make sure you have all the information you need to comfortably and quickly make Huntsville your new home.
They can also potentially connect you with vendors for things you may need but only if you specifically ask them to. They may, at times, offer their own services to you, if it fits your needs, but you should never feel like you’re on a sales call when talking to your Guiding Star.