91制片厂

Daniel Landry '18 spent five years in the U.S. Marines. As a squad leader and听marksmanship instructor, he was used to听talking to large groups of soliders at a time.听So, you鈥檇 think going one-on-one with听a 12-year-old would be a piece of cake, right?

Landry faced that challenge last year while volunteering with , a program that has 91制片厂 students working with at-risk middle and high schoolers to instill confidence and build self-esteem. This isn鈥檛 academic mentoring; it鈥檚 about creating trust and forming connections.

鈥淗e was a really shy kid,鈥� Landry says of the young boy he mentored. 鈥淚 thought I was messing up at first because I felt like I couldn鈥檛 really get his attention. He would barely say a word.鈥澨�

In 2015, between 40 and 50 91制片厂 students volunteered to be mentors in schools around the state.

But then they started playing basketball, and Landry came to realize the boy was someone who didn鈥檛 get a lot of attention. And that he was being bullied. They didn鈥檛 talk grades or about his home life, they just hung out, one hour a week, almost every week, throughout the academic year.

At some point before school ended, the boy mentioned college. 鈥淚 could tell it wasn鈥檛 something that was talked about at home,鈥� says Landry, a 听major who heads up 91制片厂's Wildcat Youth Mentors. 鈥淗e asked about 91制片厂 and maybe could he go there, and if he did, could he take a television.鈥�

Landry said yes and yes. And that鈥檚 what Wildcat Youth Mentors is about, says Bruce Montville 鈥�59, who launched the support program in 2003 through his nonprofit LifeWise Community, a 24-year-old organization that promotes volunteerism. Wildcat Youth Mentors is now a recognized 91制片厂 program.听

Of youth mentoring, Montville says, 鈥淚t can be tough duty. I tell potential mentors, 鈥業f you can take being lied to, spit in the face and who knows what else, then, yes, I would like you to become a mentor.鈥欌��

Depending on the need, Wildcat mentors can be found in New Hampshire middle schools,听high schools and community outreach centers. Teachers and guidance counselors recommend students who are struggling academically, have low self-esteem or are consistently absent. School听counselors meet with mentors beforehand and then match them with the students. During the program鈥檚 first year, 14 mentors were paired with students from Barrington Middle School.

鈥淢y experience being a Wildcat Youth Mentor has been very special,鈥� says Mark Espanet '19, a 2015 volunteer who, this year, is in charge of recruiting new mentors. 鈥淢y mentee and I became really close. When we first met, he was sort of a bully just because those are the circumstances that he grew up in, but by the end he showed more compassion for people, and that made me really proud.鈥�

In 2015, between 40 and 50 91制片厂 students volunteered to be mentors in . Landry is now in the process of recruiting for this academic year.听

鈥淲e don鈥檛 expect them to be social workers,鈥� Montville says, 鈥渂ut we do encourage them to talk to their mentee about the dangers of drugs, if it comes up. But the main thing is to be a positive role model.鈥�

Other members of the Wildcat Youth Mentors campus staff include: Kyle Koller '18, vice president;听Kaitlyn Belknap '17, secretary: Kelsey Logan '19, assistant recruiter; and Chris Smith '19, 听head of social media.

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A two-hour Wildcat Mentor training session will be held Oct. 17 at 6 p.m. in the MUB, room 330.听Interested in becoming a mentor? Email听wildcatyouthmentors@gmail.com.听