MENTORING MENTORS: EMPOWERING LEADERS TO

ENHANCE A MENTOR PROGRAMGrand Valley State University

Kate Langmeyer, Darby Naheedy, and Emma Hahs

A RESOURCE FOR STUDENTS BY STUDENTS

FREDERIK MEIJER HONORS COLLEGE MENTOR COUNCIL

GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY

DEMOGRAPHICS

■ Grand Valley State University is located in Allendale, Michigan

■ In 2016 we had 4,816 new first-year students

■ The honors college currently has 493 first-year students enrolled

■ 84% of first-year students live on campus

■ 92.2% of students enrolled currently are from Michigan

■ 7.8% of students enrolled currently are from out of state

INTRODUCTIONS“ABOUT US”

■ Who are we?

■ What do we do?

■ Why does the mentor program help?“I w

ant to

be a mentor

next year!”

Who are we?

■ We are the GVSU Honors Mentor Program

■ Comprised of students who have gone through the

mentor program as first-year students

■ Upperclassmen who care about our incoming first-year

students

“ It's been great always

having someone to smile

at me in the halls where

I still don't know many

people. She's great, and

I'm very lucky to have

her as my mentor.”

What is the GVSU Honors Mentor Program?

■ This program is designed to help transition incoming

honors students into college life

– We are specific for the honors college due to the tight

knit community and unique curriculum that begins the

first year

Why do we need this program?

■ What common problems do students face during their

first few weeks on campus?

– What do you think?

– What did you experience?

“Love it! It's

a

great idea. I

would love to be

a mentor like

Shelby.”

Why do we need this program?

■ Show incoming students how many resources are

available to them

– How many students actually use these resources?

■ What is the best way to ensure they retain this

information and know there are resolutions out there for

problems they may be facing?

How Does This Program and Honors Help Students?

- Honors students have a higher graduation rate going

through the honors curriculum and mentor program

than honors eligible students who choose not to apply

to the honors college.

OUR MENTOR PROGRAMPut on by the students for the students, with help from faculty.

Mentor Council

■ 14 hand-selected mentors

■ All upperclassmen

■ Have each been a mentor for at least one year

■ Responsible for 5-6 mentors and own mentees

Questions for Prospective Mentor Council Members ■ How many times have you been a mentor?■ What sets you apart from other mentors? For example, what do you

think made you an exceptionally good mentor? ■ What improvements would you like to see in the mentor program?■ What are your other commitments (clubs, sports, activities, work, etc.)

and the time frame of those? ■ Describe your previous leadership experiences. This does not have to

have been in an official position. How are you a leader in class or in your job or in your day to day life?

Text-in poll

Mentors

The first contact that the incoming students have before moving in!

“My mentor was one of

the best mentors in the

program. He always

tried to get us together

for lunch, and was

overall helpful in telling

us what classes to take

at GVSU.”

“She made me

feel like I

definitely made

the right choice

in coming to

GV.”

Training

1. Your mentee comes to you and tells you they’re thinking about leaving the

honors college. They say the classes are too hard and Niemeyer is too

quiet for them. They ask you how they are supposed to go about quitting

the honors program. How do you respond?

2. You’re at a party off campus where there is drinking going on, and maybe

you are drinking yourself. All of a sudden, one of your mentees comes in

and walks up to you. How do you handle the situation?

3. Your mentee brings up a situation that you are uncomfortable with or do

not know how to handle. How do you help them?

Matching Process - Mentor Profile

■ Name

■ Gender

■ Year

■ Residence

■ Origin

■ Major/Minor

■ Extracurricular Activities

■ Interests

“I think the match

system worked

pretty well, because

we seem to all have

quite a bit in

common and it led

to friendships.”

OVERNIGHT ORIENTATIONS

Overnight Orientations

■The Schedule– Discussions– Then the “SPLIT”

■ Parents– Parent Panel

■ Students– Play Trainwreck, Body-Body, take a night tour, and bond with one

another and the mentors that are present

■ Registration Occurs the next day

“I had an

excellent

experience

overall!

Time to Get Moving!Trainwreck

WELCOME DAYS

Tuesday■ Photo Scavenger Hunt

■ Lunch

■ Three Break-Out Sessions

“I think that it's a great

program and helps the

freshmen feel more

connected to their new

home. I also really liked

the photo scavenger

hunt because it

definitely helped me

figure out my way

around campus.”

“I felt so much

more

comfortable for

my first week on

campus!”

Wednesday

■ Group Photo

■ Frozen Yogurt

■ Meet and Greet with Upperclassmen

“Overall, I think Honors

Mentoring is a great

program that allows you

to learn a lot of

important information;

while having fun and

bonding with other

honors students.”

CHANGES MADE

Mentor Council

Mentor Council

Honors Office

Faculty

Mentor Responsibilities

Welcome Days

■ Break-out sessions

■ Scavenger hunt

The goal was to make welcome days as useful to the first-year students as possible!

“She made me

feel like I

definitely made

the right choice

in coming to GV.”

CONCLUSION

■ Why do we need this program?– Not only does it help our first year students, but our upperclassmen as well.

■ We see a common theme in our mentors– Leadership– Honesty– Integrity– Dependability

■ This program is a success and shows how our students care about their peers

“A+ !”

QUESTIONS?Comments, Concerns