For the past four years the Arcola School has promoted a mentorship program, which benefits elementary and high school students.
The idea to develop the program which pairs up a high school student with an elementary student came from a suggestion of a consultant. In Midale the school had been hosting a successful program and the consultant felt like it was something that would go over well in Arcola.
Jennifer Karlunchuk, a teacher at Arcola, learned more about the program and quickly implemented it in the school. At the beginning of the year students from grade 10 to 12 sign up to be mentors and are then paired with an elementary student. This year she has help from the School Community Liaison, Dan Graf.
Marcedes Singleton (grade 11) and Chalis Harambura (grade 12) both signed up as mentors in their grade 10 year and have enjoyed taking on the role of mentor to younger students. Each decided to join because of their love of working with kids and have continued on because of this as well.
“Each kid has their own personality and to get to work with a new one each year is a lot of fun and gives you perspective,” Singleton explained.
Harambura agreed that she has learned a lot in her three years with the program and has enjoyed working with the younger students.
The mentorship program organized a skating afternoon on Thursday, Feb. 12, for youth to enjoy.
“Throughout the year the high school students mostly plan what they’re doing with their buddy, but we usually organize a skating day and a playground day, we’ve also sometimes had a potluck…” Karlunchuk explained. “The skating day is especially fun because those who don’t get to skate all the time are out there with the biggest smiles on.”
Singleton added, “One day a week during lunch hour we’ll either play in the gym, do arts stuff, play board games, and eat lunch with them. We also do picnics as a group once it’s nicer out.”
This year the program has approximately 45 kids participating. There were 23 older students who signed up to be a part of the program.
“We try to keep it down to one younger student with an older student because that one-on-one positive role model interaction is what we’re after although sometimes two younger students will be with an older one,” Karlunchuk said. “And the older kids that sign up are so good, they take initiative, and make a difference.”
As Karlunchuk made this point she referenced the older students who were helping the younger ones with getting hot chocolate, playing board games on the floor, or skating with their buddy.
“We’re lucky our school is Kindergarten to grade 12 because otherwise we wouldn’t be able to do this.”
Though the program provides younger students with someone in an older grade that they can trust and look up to, the high school students benefit from their experiences but also from a scholarship put on by the Elks and Rebekahs. Students must submit an essay on what the program gave them and must have been involved for two years with it to qualify for the $500 scholarship.
