Each mentor has committed to do the following:

Communicate

• Meet the student once a week for an hour.
• Let the coordinator know right away if the student is missing meetings or not communicating.
• Respond to requests for updates from the coordinator.

Engage

• Support and challenge the student through dialogue and activities.
• Provide students feedback about their thoughts and behaviors.
• Act as a resource and connection to other resources.
• Encourag the student to reflect on and complete their mission statement and goals.

Mentor Confidentiality

• We do NOT expect mentors will inform us if students self-disclose alleged policy violation(s), although, there are some limits to confidentiality:
  
  • As a responsible employee at the university, you have a duty to report information to the Title IX Office if the student discloses any information regarding sexual misconduct, sexual harassment, or sexual harm.
  • OSARP may be required to report specific information provided during the completion of an educational program to other accountability processes, JMU department(s), or law enforcement, including but not limited to: sexual harm, harassment or discrimination based on a protected class, hazing, harm or threat of harm to self or others, or other behavior that is against the mission of the institution.
• If you are unsure of how to handle a confidential issue, please contact your coordinator.

Some mentors share that getting started with their student can be the hardest part! Here are some things to keep in mind as you begin the process:

• Set a good initial tone; be open & engaging
• Identify and share what each of you are looking to gain from the relationship
• Challenge each other’s assumptions about the process
• Build trust
• Set clear expectations and ground rules
  • Discuss what happens if rules are not followed
  • How will you hold each other accountable?
  • Process (frequency/type of meetings)

• Starbucks, Dunkin, or Java City
• Downtown Harrisonburg
• Edith J. Carrier Arboretum
• Get ice cream at Kline’s
• Work-out or play a game at UREC
• Go to a music or dance performance at the Forbes Center
• Go to a movie at Grafton-Stovall Theatre
• Volunteer in Harrisonburg
• Visit campus offices or attend organizational meetings:
  • Career Center
  • Student Leadership and Involvement
  • Community Engagement and Volunteer Center

Self-Acceptance

Autonomy

Positive Relations with Others

Environmental Mastery

Purpose in Life

The Mentor Experience is primarily about self-knowledge and understanding. While some of our students may have a vague idea of their purpose, it is often difficult for them to state it succinctly when asked. Helping your student create a personal mission statement is not a quick or easy process, but, in the end, most students find it to be very fulfilling.

Just as a company or organization will have a mission statement that guides their practices, a personal mission statement can help your student set clear goals and design realistic strategies for achieving them. Here are a few resources and activities to help your student create their mission statement:

• Franklin Covey Mission Statement Builder
• Mission Creation (Senge & Covey)
• Mission Creation Sheet (Covey)
• Mission, Vision, Values (Judy Rannow)
• Creating your Mission Statement PowerPoint (Laurie Beth Jones)
• Mission Statement Activity (Laurie Beth Jones)>
• Sample Mission Statements

Along with the mission statement activity, each student is required to turn in 2 short-term and 2 long-term goals with strategies to achieve those goals. Our hope is that through this process students will:

• Demonstrate increased self-awareness, including a sense of purpose and its relation to future goals
• Recognize involvement opportunities or services which may facilitate their ability to reach their identified goals
• Increase involvement at JMU in order to reach their mission and goals

Here are some activities to help your mentee develop his or her goals:

• Motivation and Goal Setting Worksheet
• Career Planning Worksheet
• JMU’s Career Center FOCUS Online Career Planning Tool
• Goals, Resources, and Action Plan Worksheet
• SMARTER Goals
• My Next Move Career Assessment

While we do require students to complete both mission statement and goal exercises, we also have several optional activities and resources for you to use during your time with your student.

Building the Relationship

• Coloring
• Make a CD (playlist) together
• Create a collage using magazines
• Book Scavenger Hunt
• Sample “Get to Know you Questions" before first meeting

Time Management Activites

• Time Management Weekly Schedule

Values/Ethics Activities

• Twenty-one Questions for Ethical Dialogue
• Values Clarification
• Values Exercises 1
• Values Exercises 2
  
• Discussion on the 8 Key Questions (QEP)

Reflection Activities

• Why College?
• Peaks and Valleys
• Things to be Thankful For
  
• Board of Directors Exercise
• Timeline Activity