The Student News Site of Westborough High School

The Lobby Observer

The Student News Site of Westborough High School

The Lobby Observer

The Student News Site of Westborough High School

The Lobby Observer

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WHS Junior Starts Her Own Mentoring Program

Nikki Benoit, a junior at Westborough High School, recently created her own mentoring program at Hastings Elementary School for kids who need just a little extra help from a positive role model. In the program, high school students, like herself, are paired with a child. The high school student mentors his/her little buddy once a week after school. Nikki’s goal is for the child to make a connection with his or her mentor and eventually benefit from the weekly meetings.

The high school students sit with the kids in their classroom, play board games with them, help them out during gym class, or just talk with them.

Nikki originally wanted to be a part of the Big Brother/Big Sister Program, but when she didn’t meet the age requirement, she took matters into her own hands and started her own program.

Beginning in December 2009, the process of creating a mentor program lasted about three months. With the help of her guidance counselor, Mrs. Neithercut, and the guidance counselor at Hastings, Ms. Catarious, Nikki was able to start the process by designing flyers, applications, and permission slips. She found an advisor to oversee the program and talked to teachers to get recommendations for students.

By February 2010, applications to become a mentor were pouring in. Nikki and the program’s advisor, WHS Special Education teacher Ms. Goyette, had to pair up the high school students with the elementary school students. Because Nikki knew most of the high school applicants, she was able to match them up with kids based on their interests and their personalities. This ensured that the kids received a mentor that was well suited for them.

Nikki describes the initial phase of the mentoring program as “really stressful.” However, after all of her hard work, the first mentoring sessions began right after February break and have continued to run smoothly.

The success of the program so far is overwhelming. There are currently 30 pairs of teens and children and 25 more applicants waiting to be assigned to a child. The high school students are getting lots of volunteer hours while the elementary school kids are benefiting from their partnerships.

Nikki says that she can already see progress with the child she is mentoring. Nikki is really proud of the success of her program, and she’s glad that she took on the challenge. She knows the program is making a significant impact on these children’s lives.

Nikki is still taking applications to become a mentor. The program is open to all students. There is, however, a greater need for male mentors so that same-sex matches can be made. Application forms can be found in the Guidance Office. To contact Nikki about the program, email her at [email protected].

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    Kim BrettaSep 16, 2010 at 7:10 pm

    After hearing about this mentoring program over the announcements, I knew I wanted to apply for it. This article was well written and also gave a lot of information for people that were looking to apply. It also helped answer some of the questions that I had about the program.

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