Almost every facet of public education has been impacted by the ongoing COVID pandemic, and that's true for the mentorship program in the Gainesville City and Hall County school systems. Right now, there are 12 new REACH scholars who need community mentors in order to earn their $10,000 scholarships upon graduation.
Marie Davis, the Director of Mentorship for Centerpoint, said five students in the Gainesville City School System and seven students in the Hall County School District, are required to have mentors as part of the REACH program. REACH was established by Gov. Nathan Deal in 2012, offering higher education opportunities for students who might not normally attend college.
"This particular scholarship is not for the straight-A student, but the child who might be a B or C student, or they might be an A student that needs the extra support," Davis said.
The students must apply for the scholarship in 7th grade. Recipients sign a contract agreeing to maintain a 2.5 HOPE-calculated GPA and remain crime, drug and behavior issue free from 8th grade until graduation. In addition, each REACH scholar must meet on a regular basis with an academic counselor and a volunteer mentor.
Davis said COVID health protocols in the school systems changed the way the scholars were honored this year - there were no public contract-signing ceremonies, for example. There also was no opportunity for recruitment of mentors for the newest recipients of the scholarships.
"Part of the problem is that we always encourage face-to-face contact, so most mentors were not prepared to set up a Zoom meeting with their kid," Davis said. "They weren't prepared to text or email because we try to keep mentors' information private and the kids' information private, so nobody was prepared."
Davis said they've ironed out those kinks, so that both mentors and students should feel comfortable with the set-up. Now, they need mentors to step up and begin their support of the students.
Davis said each mentor must participate in a training session, and of course, there's a background check, but there's no experience needed to step into a mentor role.
"I always tell people everybody's got something to give," said Davis. "We know from statistics and surveys that it does not matter who you are, what you know - it's your presence with that child [that matters]. You are going to make a difference in that child's life."
Davis said there's a five-year commitment for REACH mentors, but the relationship often lasts long past high school graduation. She's seen that happen with regular mentors, as well.
"One of our longtime mentors kept up with a kid and now the child lives in another state and she's got children of her own...it's a very relationship-based [program]," Davis said.
Davis said the most important thing for a mentor to consider is that they'll make a difference in the life of a student.
"I think it makes you a better person," Davis said. "There are certain stories where a mentor will say 'I feel like I didn't help that kid,' and I can show them statistically that they did. I am confident that anybody who mentors a child will feel better about themselves and know that they did something to help somebody."
To find out more about becoming a REACH mentor - and about other mentoring opportunities - contact Marie Davis at [email protected] or 678-997-1990.
