Peer Mentor FAQ
I'm feeling sick or I'm taking care of someone who is sick. What should I do?
If you think you or someone you live with has COVID-19, call your doctor and get advice on next steps. Regardless of the cause of illness, if you are sick or taking care of someone who is sick and cannot work, please contact Jenn Valad as soon as possible.
What if I'm having problems getting paid?
If you get paid through RF CUNY, email Jenn Valad. If you are paid through PR Assist, email Allan Edmond.
Where can I find the Peer Mentor Survival Guide?
We have created a survival guide for all Peer Mentors. This Survival Guide provides information about your home campus, and includes useful information for you and for your mentees regarding offices and services on campus (including how to reach them).
Where can I find more information about effective ways to be a peer mentor?
The leaders of the weekly pedagogy training, Dr. Steve Farenga, Salvatore Garafalo, and Gopal Subramaniam have written a Peer Mentor Manual which will help peer mentors focus on their goals as mentors.
My students are having a hard time with some math concepts. What can I do to help them?
Our mathematics specialist, Ilysse Baum, has written an extensive guide to help peers work through common math problems and misconceptions. Peer Mentors can find the manual HERE and use it as needed to help their students.
How do I sign-in for office hours work?
At QC, most Peer Mentors have office hours in Kiely 127. There is an established sign in system which will be used. If you are hosting office hours in another area, please fill in the sign-in sheet that Allan Edmond has provided. Students should indicate which peer mentor they are working with, which course they need help with, their CUNY ID, and the date and time that they arrived for mentoring.
What do I do if I can't attend my assigned class or office hours, or if I will be late?
Please refer to the attendance policy document which you signed during the peer mentor training. Simply put, if you will be missing or late to your class, you must contact your instructor and Allan Edmond. If you will be missing office hours, you must contact Allan Edmond and the Academic Support Center (if you are a QC Mentor).
How do I log my hours?
You should keep track of your own hours and enter them every other week directly on RF CUNY or PR Assist (depending on your hiring status). Follow the appropriate pictographic how-to's for logging hours: RF CUNY or PR Assist.
I see some information on the project website, in an email, posted in the Peer Mentor Office, or elsewhere that is unclear or wrong. What gives?
If you see something, say something: let any of the program directors know about the issue, and we'll see that it gets fixed.
Why did I receive a request to join a Google Group?
You are part of a Google group to allow us to communicate with all peers more easily and efficiently.
Why am I not receiving emails that other peer mentors are receiving?
If you notice this problem, please let Corinna Singleman or Allan Edmond know.
I haven't received my check, where is it?
If you still haven't received a check, verify that you entered your hours (and submitted them on time) in RF CUNY or PR Assist. If you have further problems or questions, contact Jennifer Valad.
How do I sign up for direct deposit?
Use this RF-CUNY PowerPoint for instructions. If it doesn't seem to match the RF-CUNY layout you see, try the sequence below:
Navigate to https://rfcuny.org , log in > Electronic Services > My Payroll and Benefits >Employee Services > Payroll Information > Direct Deposit - and follow the directions.
Your employee ID should be in the email you received from RF CUNY when you were hired.
How do I complete my required IRB CITI Training?
As a member of a research team working with human subjects, all Peer Mentors are required to complete the Human Subjects Training Course: Responsible Conduct of Research and Human Subjects Basic Courses. To do this, go to www2.CUNY.edu. Find "Research" at the top right of the page and choose "Research Compliance" form the drop-down options. On the next page, choose "Training & Education" from the options on the left side of the page. Click on "CITI Training" on the left below "Training & Education". On the next page, click on the blue bar in the main page called "Instructions". Follow the step-by-step instructions as laid out on this page. When you get to step 4, complete the 'Responsible Conduct of Research (CUNY Researchers)' and the 'Human Subjects Basic Course (HSR for Undergraduate Students)'. Once you have completed both trainings, email a copy of the Completion Certificate to Patrick Johnson.
Note: Make sure to give yourself plenty of time to complete these trainings. They can take multiple hours and you may want to do a few modules at a time rather than trying to complete it all at once.