UL Lafayette Mentoring GrantTwo mentoring programs at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette were established recently thanks to a grant from the Board of Supervisors for the University of Louisiana System.
The system awarded a total of $240,000 in grants to its eight universities to establish or enhance mentoring programs. The programs, which are funded by Learn and Serve America and the Louisiana Department of Education, will link college students with at-risk youth to improve literacy, numeracy and interpersonal skills.
UL Lafayette received $28,311 for both programs.
“There is a real need in our state for more hands-on learning and support,” said UL System President Randy Moffett. “With all eight of our universities strategically located throughout Louisiana, these sustainable mentoring programs are primed to have a tremendous impact - one college student and one at-risk student at a time.”
UL Lafayette’s two programs include:
Success Bound: the Role of University of Louisiana at Lafayette Sociological Society in Mentoring High School Students towards College Success. It will utilize 50 UL Lafayette Sociological Society students for the mentoring of 50 ninth grade students from Northside High School, Carencro High School and Opelousas High School through tutoring, college preparatory assistance, and social activities. Each year, an additional 50 college students and 50 high school students will be paired, impacting a total of 150 high school students over three years. The overreaching goal of this project is to unite faculty, students and community representatives from diverse disciplines to address low high school graduation rates and corresponding college entry rates among African American students.
A Head Start for Family and Consumer Sciences: Mentoring by UL Lafayette Hospitality Management Students. It will pair one senior level UL Lafayette Hospitality Management (HRTM) intern with each of the 10 Acadiana high school programs to offer Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) programs to over 250 junior and senior high school students. These interns will provide the high school students with support on technical industry skills, career paths, post secondary education opportunities and industry certifications. They will also mentor the FCS schools in preparation for local, state and national competitions held each year. The project aims for the HRTM program to create and foster an ongoing relationship with the FCS programs in Acadiana and to ultimately create an awareness of the possibilities in the educational sector for the youth interested in the foodservice industry.
The nine mentoring programs funded throughout the UL System are designed to link 400 mentors with almost 1,000 at-risk students, enhancing the Louisiana Department of Education’s College and Career Readiness programs. The Department of Education contributed $80,000 towards this partnership.
“As the K-12 education community works to support our students and prepare them to successfully pursue their college and career goals, well-designed mentoring programs are vital to our efforts,” said State Superintendent of Education Paul Pastorek. “The University of Louisiana System is a valued partner to the Louisiana Department of Education as we attempt to raise student achievement through targeted initiatives, and we are grateful for Dr. Moffett’s consistent support through this program as well as many others. This is a unique occasion for college level students to serve their communities and for high school students to catch a glimpse of the opportunities that await them after graduation. I have no doubt that if they take advantage of the opportunity – both groups of students will learn and benefit from the experience.”
In addition to the Department of Education funding, the grants are a final $160,000 distribution of a three-year, $1.2 million grant to the UL System from the Corporation for National Community Service’s Learn and Serve America division. Over the past three years, the UL System has awarded over $1 million to 70 projects that incorporated service-learning on its eight campuses.
While some of those projects are still underway, they have already engaged 8,462 college students, 675 faculty and staff, 201 youth volunteers, 1,276 adult volunteers and 243 community partners. These participants have logged almost 100,000 hours of service to Louisiana’s communities.