About the Women's Mentoring Program
The 2009-2010 school year marks the fifth year of the Women's Mentoring Program. The Program connects undergraduate women one-one-one with a mentor (a more experienced undergraduate student or graduate student, or a staff or faculty member) who strives to provide them with personal, academic, and professional support, guidance and encouragement. In addition to the one-on-one relationship, all participants will be strongly encouraged to participate in Women's Center activities, and to attend informal group luncheons and events. There are a number of successful Women's Mentoring Programs throughout the world, and mentoring has been proven to be an invaluable tool for career success.
Mentors: Female or male staff, faculty, or more experienced students (undergraduate senior or graduate student).
Mentees: All undergraduate-level women are eligible to participate, but the program focuses specifically on first-year students.
>> New!<< Student Scholarships & Course (INTR 404: Exploring Peer Mentoring & Leadership)
Undergraduate student mentors will receive a $100 scholarship each semester and are required to take a 3-credit interdisciplinary studies course, INTR 404 (CRN # 33627) during the Fall, 2009 semester. The course meets Monday nights from 5:00 p.m. to 6:50 p.m.
Taught by the Director of the Women's Center, the course combines theory, practical application, and activities to enrich student peer mentoring relationships. Participants from the Women's Mentoring Program will join Peer Mentors from the PACE (Peer Advising on the College Experience) program in the Office of Muliticultural Affairs (OMA). An opportunity to take the class as internship credit in the fall is also available in select departments. To register, please complete the mentor application and email hgasser@uidaho.edu.
INTERESTED?
Complete the online application to apply to be a mentor or mentee in the program. Call us at 885-6616 with any questions.
Time Commitment: Successful mentoring doesn't involve a huge time commitment. Our program requires applicants to attend an introductory meeting where mentors and mentees meet, and mentoring pairs are formed. At this meeting, the mentor/mentee pairs have a chance to begin to get to know one another, meet other matched pairs, eat delicious food, and have a great time. Mentors and mentees will also decide how often they want to meet, and set up their first meeting. The mentor/mentee pairs collectively determine how often they want to meet. For example, a mentor/mentee pair could meet every other week for lunch/coffee, or could meet once a month in the mentor's office. The meeting time and location is very flexible, and is determined by the mentor/mentee pair themselves.
Network Model: As opposed to the traditional one-on-one mentoring model, our program is structured by the networking model. This model emphasizes collectivity and the development of diverse mentoring sources. Participants will be provided with a one-on-one relationship, but will simultaneously be encouraged to participate in Women's Center activities and informal luncheons and other events to further build their social network. This relieves undue pressure on the mentor who, in traditional mentoring roles, is expected to meet all the needs of the mentee, and provides the mentee with an expanded source of encouragement and guidance.
Intermediary: Staff at the Women's Center will be coordinating the overall structure of the program this year. Our new Mentoring Program Assistant , Lynn McAlister, will be responsible for providing regular check-ins to make sure pairs are successful in their relationships, assisting in resolving conflicts, and organizing group gatherings.
2009-2010 Mentoring Program Assistant
Lynn McAlister
Phone: (208) 885-6616
lynnm@uidaho.edu or wcenter@uidaho.edu
Mentoring Program FAQs
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