UWI mentors young minds

No. 46 Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Students of the University of the West Indies Campus in Montego Bay will now benefit from the Mentorship Programme presently administered by the Office of the Director of Student Services and Development.
   It has been extended to Montego Bay campus for the first time and is intended to provide a learning experience outside the classroom.
   The mentorship programme was started in 1992 by Dr. Angela Gordon-Stair; with the aim of providing an opportunity for an ongoing mentoring relationship beyond the duration of the student’s academic involvement.
   The programme is designed to provide UWI graduates with interpersonal skills not taught at the school level, but which are essential for survival and success in the competitive world of work.

   On January 22, 2010, Dr. Thelora Reynolds the Director of Student Services and Development (UWI), held a Mentorship Orientation Session on the goals, aims and objectives of the UWI Mentorship Programme held at the UWI Campus at 10 Queens Drive, Montego Bay, St. James.
   Dr. Reynolds presented her definition on mentoring as the relationship experience through which one person empowers another by sharing god-given resources.
   “Mentors are special people in our lives that through their actions, the work they do, the help they provide, propel others towards fulfilling their potentials or moving towards self actualization,” she said. “A characteristic of mentoring knowledge is the one to one relationship that seeks to empower the mentee to take responsibility for his/her learning through the knowledge, insight and perspective offered by the mentor,” she added.
   Coordinator, Merit Henry, addressed the group at the orientation, saying, ‘As mentors you should be encouraged to meet with mentees at least four hours per month.” During these meetings, students will be provided with an opportunity to participate in, or assist with, a community service project or volunteer activity in which the mentor is involved.
   They are also expected to counsel students regarding professional development, with emphasis on mentors own background and also discuss the students’ expectations.
   Chairman of the mentorship committee is businessman Mr. Tony Hart who recommended all 20 mentors invited to the mentorship orientation session for students in Western Jamaica.