Although students have busy lives, students should take the time to mentor.
Busy college students often get so caught up in work and hectic schedules that they lose sight of investing time in unselfish, worthy causes.
With that said, The Temple News would like to suggest that spending time as a mentor is something just as equally fulfilling as volunteering. Volunteering time as a mentor will prove to be rewarding.
At some point, students have all had a role model. Unfortunately, not everyone has that and a large student body can make an effort to lend a hand to the surrounding community schools and their youth.
The Temple News has always supported community partnership between Temple students and local schools, covering events between student organizations and local youth.
The results of being a mentor can be astounding. Take the organization, Big Brothers Big Sisters, an organization that pairs a child with a role model. According to a study done to show its impact, 52 percent of children enrolled in the program were less likely to skip class. That statistic alone could help close the gap of Philadelphia’s poor high school graduation rate.
In Priscilla Ward’s article, [Children gain voice through literacy, p. 10] she reports that organizations like The Philadelphia Youth Poetry Movement and Mighty Writers has served as a platform for youth to seek refugee and express themselves through writing. Through exposure to workshops, mentoring conferences and interactive activities, at risk youth are able to emulate the positive images they encounter by being involved with such programs.
Programs like this can’t exist without the time and effort of caring mentors. Mentors make profound impacts by simply guiding those through life on good principles and support.
While it isn’t realistic for everyone to serve as a mentor, students can still mentor indirectly through the promotion of leadership. Leadership qualities exhibited in everyday life will rub off onto others.
The smallest things can make the biggest difference. No matter how small the impact is, understand that the smallest initiative to become a mentor is the difference from a child graduating or falling behind.
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