Mentor Coordinator Report
Stories & Quotes To Share:
A quick, choppy month:
We returned from Christmas break on January 6th to finish our first semester about 2 weeks later. Due to finals week and starting semester 2 with new elective classes, not all matches were able to meet every week. Naturally, students complained a great deal about these missed meetings. They truly value the time together.
Sweet Success:
Several mentors and students happily shared good reports with me about first semester grades! One freshman girl who really struggled earlier in the year with low grades and missing assignments happily shared her grades with me. Earlier in the year she felt very discouraged, had a hard time adjusting to the workload of high school, and struggled with asking for help. Her mentor provided a great source of encouragement and positive validation. When they worked on solving problems together and figuring out what she could do differently, it really paid off. Another freshman boy and his mentor checked in weekly about his grades, providing accountability and encouragement for him to keep up even when he didn’t feel motivated. That on-going support led to him passing all of his classes first semester. Mentors make a difference!
Persevering and Overcoming Physical Pain:
One of our students had a serious injury earlier in the year and fractured his spine. He spent a lot of time away from school, struggling with pain, and not being able to participate in the sports he loves. Interestingly enough, his mentor has had similar experiences and multiple back surgeries. They were able to talk together about how to deal with pain, maintain a positive attitude, and keep on going; his mentor could relate to his experiences in a way that others couldn’t since he had been there. Another student had multiple surgeries over the summer and has serious scarring on her arm and hand. She has been having to deal with physical therapy, painful scar tissue, as well as PTSD from everything she has been through. Her mentor had a serious surgery due to cancer and has been through a long rehab, also dealing with scar tissue and physical therapy to regain motion. The two have bonded even more over this shared experience and now refer to each other affectionally as “scar sisters.”
Highlights:
• Wrapping up Semester 1
• Starting new classes/ figuring out new mentoring meeting times
• Jan. 11th Saturday Academic Support: Served breakfast to 45 students
• 73 matches
• I student graduated at the end of semester 1
Upcoming:
• February New Mentor Orientation
• Design a BTO decal contest
• February Mentor Equipping with Mike Black “Keeping Students Afloat”
Number of Current Matches: 73
Submitted by Lisa – ReynoldsL@lynden.wednet.edu