GEAR UP BRIDGE BUILDERS A transition mentoring program

Mission The GEAR UP Bridge Builders program allows students to build positive relationships with peers while learning social, emotional and academic skills that will help them have a successful transition to high school.

Basic structure  11 th and 12 th grade high school students recruited to mentor 8 th graders. Targeted 11 th graders.  Mentoring is done in a group format with about a 3:8 mentor to mentee ratio.  Program runs from January of 8 th grade through June of 9 th grade.  Meetings take place once a month at the middle school. 8 th graders are pulled out of their last period class.  HS mentors meet with GEAR UP staff to prepare their lesson/activities once a month at the high school before the meeting with the 8 th graders.

Getting started  Met with each high school and middle school principal to present our program proposal.  Proposal included: 1. Program description 2. What the high school would be responsible for 3. What the middle school would be responsible for 4. What GEAR UP staff would be responsible for.

High School  In building point person to: Help distribute and collect applications Help communicate with students Be available to answer student/staff questions  Space for mentors to have a monthly planning meeting.

Middle School  Assistance identifying 8 th grade students. Include feedback from teachers and counselors.  Administrator approval to pull students out of class once a month.  Space for monthly meetings to occur.  Assistance supervising if multiple classrooms are being used.

GEAR UP staff  Advertisement of program both at the HS and MS.  Coordinate with HS staff on mentor recruiting.  Coordinate with MS staff on 8 th grade participant recruiting  Attend monthly planning meeting with the HS mentors.  Ensure all participants sign in.  Coordinate with appropriate building staff on space and supervision needs.

Recruiting of high school mentors  Created a flyer and application which is included in your folder.  Presented at all staff meeting so high school teachers were aware of the program and could encourage students to apply.  GEAR UP staff went to the HS and presented in 11 th grade US History classes.  Provided an extended training at the beginning of the program. Focus on setting clear boundaries.

Identifying 8 th graders  Looked at drop out risk indictors: Attendance, Behavior, Core Class performance.  Targeted students not engaging in outside of the school day GEAR UP activities.  Sent lists to teachers and counselors for feedback.  Presented it in a way so that students saw it as a privilege rather than something the “bad” kids were doing.

Topic: Differences between Middle School and High School Objectives: 1. Academic differences - Credits count and every class matters - Type/difficulty of the work - Expectations of teachers 2. Social differences - Importance of and ways to get involved. Example: sports, clubs, ASB - High school events: spirit days, football games, homecoming, color war - The truth about cliques. 3. Myth busting – opportunity for mentees to share what they have heard about high school and how whether it’s true or not. Format must include: Ice Breaker Introduction of topic Discussion

What we’ve learned so far  Can be difficult navigating the HS and MS calendars.  MS students can be difficult to engage. Breaking into smaller groups so it’s a 1:2 or 3 mentor to mentee ratio could me more effective.  The more interactive the better. Ice breakers and games help to break down walls.  Giving the HS students more control over the meeting seemed to open them up more and felt more natural.

Things to keep in mind  Take the time to plan and set this up right.  How structured of a curriculum do you want to use.  Progression of monthly topics.  How often and when to hold the meetings.  Presentation (selling) of the program to 8 th graders.  Support from the MS and HS is key!  Provide ongoing training, support and feedback to the HS mentors.