Education majors at Marist and middle school students are learning from each other through a mentoring project with the Liberty Partnerships Program (LPP). The project is provided in collaboration with the Teacher Education Department. Mentoring at Marist is designed to help middle school students improve in Math and English Language Arts, expose them to college, and provide Education majors with field experience.
Mentors meet with their mentees on campus on a weekly or monthly basis to engage them in academic activities. The mentors also discuss their major, career goals, and college life. The mentees have dinner in the dining hall at the end of each session and take a tour of the campus during the semester. At the end of each semester, parents attend a recognition ceremony and meet their child's mentor.
Professors in the Teacher Education Department provide special training and guidance to the mentors. The mentors prepare lesson plans and evaluate each session in an effort to enhance their teaching skills.
During the 2006-2007 academic year, 32 Marist students and 79 middle school students participated in Mentoring at Marist. The program has been very successful in engaging LPP students and providing a teaching experience for Marist students. The program has consistently received rave reviews from the mentors, mentees, and parents. On a survey completed by mentees, 98% believed that they would do better in Math or ELA and 100% rated the program as good to excellent. A total of 97% of the mentors indicated that they found the experience to be personally rewarding and 100% would recommend the experience to other Education majors as a valuable learning experience.
Education majors who are interested in becoming a mentor should complete the Tutor/Mentor Application online or contact the Liberty Partnerships Office at 454-4199. Mentors must be eligible for College Work-Study to be paid and volunteers will earn priority points. Mentoring may fulfill requirements for field experience in Education.
"Mentoring has opened my daughter's mind. It has raised her motivation to excel in class and pursue college." - Parent of mentee
"My mentor was so nice and such a help. I know he will make a great teacher and hopefully his students will like him as much as I do. I'll miss him." - LPP student
