SUMMER

PROGRAMS 2025

SUMMER

PROGRAMS 2025

Boarding School Questions: What is a Mentor?

The origination of mentor came from Homer’s Odyssey in the form of Odysseus’s friend, Mentor, who was responsible for guiding and safekeeping Odysseus’s son Telemachus when he went away to fight in the Trojan War. In this same spirit, the teachers and staff members of Randolph-Macon Academy take on these same responsibilities through the mentoring program.  While a mentor may wear many hats—teacher, coach, alumni director, academic dean, or even president– some of the most important roles are providing encouragement, support, guidance, and a positive perspective on life to their mentees. 

The mentoring groups are made up of 2-8 students per adult and they meet once a week, before lunch on Wednesdays. This thirty minute block of time allows students to talk about how their week is going and gives the mentor the opportunity to address any topics such as the honor code, college applications, or the importance of community service. In addition, many mentors take their groups off-campus for lunches or dinners at least once a semester; in fact, the Parents’ Association provides some funds to do so. 

We want to provide an environment for our students where they can feel comfortable seeking out advice and guidance on anything.  Another goal for the mentoring program at R-MA is to help make sure the students are staying on track academically. The mentors have the ability and responsibility to stay up-to-date with their mentees’ schedules, grades, and discipline report to make sure they are meeting their goals. This enables the mentors to assist them in finding solutions, if necessary, such as tutoring.

Outside of the realm of academics or interpersonal relationships, the mentors also encourage their mentees to actively participate on campus through athletics, extracurricular activities, and community service. Mentors often attend the sporting events, plays, or performances of their students to show their support.  The mentor also functions as a point of contact for the family of their students if they have any questions or concerns that might arise while the student is at R-MA.

We seek to provide our student body with a type of second family and the mentoring program is a wonderful embodiment of that goal. Would you still like to know more about R-MA’s mentoring program? Please contact the Upper School mentoring program coordinator at usmentor@rma.edu .

 

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