Austin worked on the website a little bit, and after a while, since I got Dreamweaver, I decided to throw together a website. It is at the following site:
http://stf.team360.us
Hopefully, the program will start again once we are all back at school in the fall… only a few more days!
Just yesterday, all of the mentors in the program attended a workshop. There, we basically reviewed and learned the different types of responsibilities and commitments required of all of the mentors. Soon enough, we should be making our first trip to the school and meeting our mentees! =)
It has been quite a while, and in all of that time, Start To Finish has really progressed! About 2-3 weeks ago, three of us together, along with a representative from the College Of Computing, went to North Atlanta High School (which is about 10 minutes drive from Georgia Tech). We were at the meeting for about 2 hours or so and met a lot of different people. It looks like there are a lot of students lined up for this program, in the school. Now that we have an established school, we are trying to recruit more people to be mentors. There is actually an information session on February 20th in the Student Center. Once we get 10 mentors in the program, we can call Start To Finish officially a club. After the info session, there will be a training session for the mentors on February 22nd, and very soon after that, the program will start officially! In the meantime, time to get things off the ground some more! =)
Our Expectations outline was very solid, according to Giselle. We are currently trying to schedule a meeting North Atlanta High School to see if we can start this program, starting in Spring 2007, with just a few mentor-student pairings.
These are all of the expectations we came up with, for all of the diferent groups of people involved.
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College of Computing
- Provide
o Grant money
o Performance assessment material
o Training resources
o Institutional stability and legal aid
- Receive
o Promotion of Technology and Computing
o GT awareness
Mentors
- Student assessment
- Student achievement
- Consistent tutor sessions
- Contact with teachers and parents/guardian
- Extra (non-academic) one-on-one time with mentors
- Role model
- Attend GT functions
- Identify strengths and weaknesses
o Seek/encourage/provide/reference extra help
- Teach material and study habits
o Learning techniques
o Study skills
o Reading comprehension
o Writing proficiency
- Adhere to curriculum
* Confidentiality?
Students
- Be available
- Be willing to change and work
- Do not expect mentor to teach new material or do assignments
- Be honest and open
- President:
o Recruitment and Marketing
o Public Relations
o Personnel Liaison
o Student/Mentor Evaluation
- Treasurer:
o Grants and Funds
o Budget
o Logistics
o Event Coordination
- Secretary:
o Participant Information
o Minutes
o Legal and Ethical Issues
- Senior (Lead) Mentors
o Monitor small group of mentors
o Small group events
o Mentor meetings
o Training
- Faculty Advisor
o Institutional Liaison
Today, we met Giselle Martin. She is part of Admissions and Recruiting, as well and Minority Recruiting and Admissions in the College of Computing at Georgia Institute of Technology. We met with her to talk to her about our proposed program, and she said it was very promising. Here are the minutes from the meeting.
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North Atlanta High School
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Northside Drive, Atlanta ~ 5 mi. away
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Magnate school
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Potential meeting after Thanksgiving
Funding – $500 for each per semester for STARS SLC involvement
Concerns that need to be address in the future:
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Logistics
o? ? ? ? ? ? Where and when mentors will meet with student
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? School Specific
o? ? ? ? ? ? Curriculum
o? ? ? ? ? ? Demographics
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Rules and Guidelines
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Evaluation Tools
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Marketing
o? ? ? ? ? ? Name
o? ? ? ? ? ? Logo
o? ? ? ? ? ? Slogan/pitch
Expectations (to be outlined by Wed. 15, November):
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? College of Computing
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Mentors
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Students
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Organization
-? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? Training
Today, Corbin, Michael, and I all met and discussed a new program that we are trying to start up. It’s called Start To Finish. The main goal of this program is to get underachieving students in high schools to graduate. Of course, there are many many MANY logistics to this. But, the proposal that we have written is attached.
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Start To Finish: A Scholastic Mentor Program
Proposal
Summary:
This proposal is to set forth the ideas and execution of a college to high school mentor program. The program targets students who might have trouble graduating under their present circumstances, specifically larger high schools where graduation rates are less than ideal. College mentors and their students will pair up, providing the students with academic resources and keeping them focused on high school graduation. As college students, the mentors are provided with a unique perspective, allowing them to relate, tutor, and advise the high school student.
Introduction:
For years, the United States has attempted to remedy its weakness in the public school system. Standardized tests were a way to gauge the improvement in education, but teaching has become a practice of raising test scores. This has led to more goal-oriented teaching styles which, combined with a rising student-to-teacher ratio, has led to less focus on the individual needs of each student. Some students can handle this changing environment, but others are less well adapted, especially those without the will or reason to concentrate on school.
This is where a teenager’s role models factor into the equation. Parents are, and have always been, the number one influence in their child’s life. Their time, support, and encouragement make a significant difference in a student’s education. However, many parents find themselves wishing they could spend more time facilitating their child’s education. However, other daily obstacles, such as work, miscellaneous errands, and family care, eventually get in the way of finding enough time. This is where the mentor program can play a critical role: it can become a helping hand to the parent and provide a role model for the student.
Program:
The basic premise of the program is to set up one college mentor with one high school student. The primary concentration is on improving the high school student’s academic achievement and ensuring the student?s graduation. The process through which this goal is accomplished is generally up to the mentor, but periodic tutoring sessions, communication with teachers and parents, as well as reviewing progress reports are all activities the mentors are expected to perform.
To get this program started, a variety of challenges need to be tackled. Currently, several students at Georgia Tech are being asked about their possible levels of participation. At the same time, specific administrators and professors have been asked for their input and support for the program. Through these participants, contacts will need to be extended to potential high schools.
When a participating high school is identified, the program will be discussed with the school’s guidance counselors, principles, teachers, and other school officials. From these discussions, rising high school students will be identified, and their families will be invited to participate in the first run of the mentor program. At the same time, the first college mentors will be recruited, most of whom will likely first year college students. The initial start-up of the program will consist of only a few student-mentor pairs. This way, there is no risk of being overwhelmed and any problems that arise can be dealt with in confidence. The high school students and mentors will meet a few times before the start of the high school student?s freshmen year, in order for them to get to know each other.
This relationship forms the cornerstone of the program’s integrity and demonstrates the contrast between a standard tutor-student relationship. The small difference in age allows for the student to connect with their college mentor, but at the same time still allows for the mentor to secure his/her role as an authority figure. The years spent working with each other provides accountability and a commitment to success not found in any tutor program. In essence, the strength of the student-mentor bond is combined with the tutor mentality to cement a productive and long lasting relationship.
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