Our school recruits volunteers from the community to mentor students. A mentor is someone who listens, encourages, and supports a student as they grow academically and personally. Some may think that being a mentor requires having some sort of expertise, wisdom, or special knowledge to bestow upon a child, but that is not the case. All that we ask of our mentors is to show up for the child consistently, get to know them, and be a friend to them. Many of our mentors play board/card games with their mentees (provided by the school), ask fun icebreaker questions, color or do art together, or just sit and chat.
We ask that mentors meet with their mentee once a week for about 30 minutes. Most of our mentors come during the student's lunch period and meet with them while they eat, but another time during the school day is possible as well. We also ask that mentors commit to at least one school year of mentoring. Some of our mentors continue to meet with their mentee as they progress through the years!
Mentors are required to complete a 1-hour virtual training through our partner, Mentor Upstate. Mentor Upstate will have you complete an application and will run a background check.
Students in the program have received consent from their parent/guardian to have a mentor.
Fill out the Mentor Interest Form or contact our school counselor, Mrs. Bolt directly. Call 864-355-3777 or email msbolt@greenville.k12.sc.us. If you're ready to start, we will get you signed up for a training and then assign a mentee!
Check out this video on the MES Facebook page about our mentoring program!