Mentor Program Lowers Pay, Raises Expectations
Alec MacColl
Issue date: 2/7/06 Section: News
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As the Class of 2010 moves into dorms next fall, something will be missing: their mentors. This week Dr. Margaret Lindsey, head of the First Year Program, presented a major restructuring of the role of mentors in the program to PRIDE leaders, Residential Life staff and faculty involved with the governance of the First Year Program. "We realized there were some issues [with the program] that we wanted to address," said Lindsey. "We knew the program wasn't perfect, so the question was, '[what] can we do to fix it?'"
Under the new plan, mentors will no longer live in first-year dorms with their students. They will be free to live anywhere on campus. Consequently, the program will pay mentors $500 for the fall term, compared to the $3000 they received this year. Lindsey said about $2500 of the mentors' pay compensated them for living with freshmen, similar to what RAs make for their duties. Most mentors will stay on for the fall semester only, as opposed to the full year the program currently requires. They will receive one credit for their fall term work. Mentors will also take a required half credit course during the fall term to give them the tools to help their freshmen academically. "At the moment, in the life of Trinity College," Lindsey stressed, "it is very important that mentors be part of a student's academic transition from high school to college."
Each first year seminar has a budget of $800. Beginning next year each mentor will also have his or her own budget of $250. While the money is intended for out of class group activities, the mentor will have complete control over its use.
Mentors have lived in first-year dorms since 1996, when they first became a part of the First Year Program seminars. The founding idea behind adding mentors was an attempt to pay attention to the "whole student" and his or her transition from high school to college. In the following years Residential Life and First Year Program staff began to realize the ambiguous position of mentors in freshmen dorms between disciplinarian and academic tutor. "Whenever you have a position like a mentor, with kind of a dual role, you're going to run into problems," said Director of Campus Life Amy DeBaun.
Under the new plan, mentors will no longer live in first-year dorms with their students. They will be free to live anywhere on campus. Consequently, the program will pay mentors $500 for the fall term, compared to the $3000 they received this year. Lindsey said about $2500 of the mentors' pay compensated them for living with freshmen, similar to what RAs make for their duties. Most mentors will stay on for the fall semester only, as opposed to the full year the program currently requires. They will receive one credit for their fall term work. Mentors will also take a required half credit course during the fall term to give them the tools to help their freshmen academically. "At the moment, in the life of Trinity College," Lindsey stressed, "it is very important that mentors be part of a student's academic transition from high school to college."
Each first year seminar has a budget of $800. Beginning next year each mentor will also have his or her own budget of $250. While the money is intended for out of class group activities, the mentor will have complete control over its use.
Mentors have lived in first-year dorms since 1996, when they first became a part of the First Year Program seminars. The founding idea behind adding mentors was an attempt to pay attention to the "whole student" and his or her transition from high school to college. In the following years Residential Life and First Year Program staff began to realize the ambiguous position of mentors in freshmen dorms between disciplinarian and academic tutor. "Whenever you have a position like a mentor, with kind of a dual role, you're going to run into problems," said Director of Campus Life Amy DeBaun.
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