On an early Thursday morning in late November, 26 volunteer mentors met with 28 students in the Roosevelt High School library to work on students’ college and scholarship application essays. Several of the students were part of Katie Gipson’s “StepUp” and Keri Huges “Avid” programs, and came prepared with a draft. Mentors were able to help with grammar and spelling, but even more important, they helped each student hone in on his or her unique experiences and abilities.
This is WITS’ third year doing college essay mentoring, and it was our first time working at Roosevelt.
Here’s what some students had to say:
My mentor spoke to me about life and brought a lot out of me. We formed a basic structure of my essay.
He helped a lot! He let me know exactly what I had done sloppily and gave me ideas to revise it.
She is amazing. She is an expert at writing. She took the day off for me and I really appreciate it.
Our mentors also had a great experience, noting that they enjoyed getting to know the students and feeling as though they had made a difference. Thanks to all our volunteers, the students, and the administrators who helped make this such a successful event!
