The Tiger Mentor Program, which was introduced in the 2022 school year, pairs freshmen with upperclassmen to help them with adapting to going to a larger school. I joined this program in my junior year and received two freshmen to mentor and am now re-enrolling in the program as a senior.
I truly believe that this program is beneficial to the entire student body, so I wanted to get some feedback from my junior year mentee, Dalton Racque-Martin. I asked Dalton a few questions about his experience in the program and whether he felt it was beneficial to him at St. X. Here are the questions and his responses:
Did you find the program beneficial as an incoming freshman? What did you get out of it and what did it help you with?
I definitely found the program beneficial as an incoming freshman because I came from a public school and didn’t really know anyone when I got to St. X. I really think having a mentor helped to adjust to St. X and made me want to reach out to people and make new friends.
Do you think the amount of required meeting time was enough to truly make a difference?
I think the required amount of meeting time is plenty. I like how I can go to my mentor if I need help with anything, and I think the time you spend with you mentor really is up to the both of you. I definitely wish I would have reached out more when I was having trouble last year and spending more time with my mentor really would have helped with that.
Do you plan on joining the program as a mentor when you are an upperclassmen? If so, why?
I think I really do see myself joining the program as an upperclassmen because of the amazing opportunity that it provided for me. I really appreciate my mentor and how he has helped me. I also appreciate the service opportunity we did together, as I really think it gave us a chance to get closer, and I would really like to help someone else fit in at St. X just like Henry did for me.
Dalton’s responses further my positive opinions on the program. He states having a mentor made him want to reach out and make more friends, as well as potentially join the program as an upperclassman to spread that feeling to incoming freshmen. His responses point to the effectiveness of this program in creating a tradition for years to follow of upperclassmen putting in time to create an even better environment for new students.
It is not only beneficial to the mentees, but also the mentors. I have had a great experience with this program and feel the opportunity to guide someone has given me a chance to grow as a person. Coach Cottrell, Yochum, and Glaser have outdone themselves with the creation of this program and the work they continuously put in is greatly appreciated as it creates a stronger sense of brotherhood within our school. I would definitely recommend this program for any future upperclassmen as it is a great opportunity to grow individually and as a whole school.
