Squalicum High School’s Link Crew Mentoring Program welcomes incoming freshmen with open arms in hopes of inviting newcomers into an all-inclusive environment. Upcoming ninth graders are first introduced to their mentors at freshmen orientation, which is only a few days before the school year begins.
Upperclassmen within the link crew are divided into groups of two and each pair is assigned a small group of between eight to twelve freshmen which the mentors will guide throughout the year. During the summer before school begins, mentors prepare for orientation with a variety of activities, as well as a themed tour of Squalicum in which mentors provide their incoming ninth graders with plentiful information about the new learning experience.
Casey Tran, an incoming senior at Squalicum High School, is also a current mentor in the program. “My favorite memory is freshmen orientation because it’s so fun to dress up as something fun and give tours around the school,” Tran says. “I remember as a freshman when we all dressed up like cookie monsters and thought that it was so fun and I hope to make the same impact on my freshmen to overall make their freshmen year fun.”
Besides the skits, cheers and spirit-filled energy at orientations, mentors also meet with their ninth graders once a month to check in on the development of their year. Freshmen follow-ups allow new students to reflect on their current status throughout the year, while mentors provide each group with support and advice to guide them on the right journey throughout their high school experience.
Mentors embed real-life lessons within their activities – like effective communication or teamwork – in order to give freshmen insight on problem-solving skills to challenges in their own lives. This program gives new students immense knowledge on how to be successful from the beginning to the end of their high school experience.
Amy Flores, another incoming senior and current mentor at Squalicum High School says, “The mentor program helps incoming freshmen ease into high school knowing what to expect and having a friend or mentor along the way to guide them through this new experience. We use our past high school experiences paired with fun activities to connect and advise about high school which ranges from time management, asking for assistance on assignments or working with others. These experiences don’t just help them through high school, but these same things can help them in college, in future jobs and generally in life.”
Squalicum’s link crew is selected the spring before freshmen orientation. Students must attend training throughout the summer to better prepare for follow-ups and orientation, and develop leadership skills. Not only do mentors need to organize activities for each event, they are required to plan an academic celebration every quarter for freshmen who receive a 3.5 grade-point average or above.
“For mentor and link class, we have two projects we have to do per quarter which is one that benefits the freshmen,” says Tran. “For example, during finals week my partner and I created a study sheet with candy and another time we baked cookies for them.”
Mentors are expected to take on a variety of responsibilities involving leadership and organization. This program not only offers incoming ninth graders support during their first year of high school, it also teaches upperclassmen how to take initiative and be a role model to younger students. “I remember how rocky my freshmen orientation was as a mentor,” says Flores. “I did the activities out of order, I couldn’t get my words out for some reason and it just didn’t feel like I was presenting my best self. I felt at ease though when my freshmen looked up to me and welcomed me with open arms no matter how nervous I was.”
Despite the nerves, this program offers guidance to incoming ninth graders and leadership opportunities to juniors and seniors who have already overcome their freshmen year fears.
Entering a new learning environment with an abundant amount of upperclassmen can be terrifying and confusing, but the mentor program gives students a trustworthy individual to guide them every step of the way. Mentor and link crew ensures no one stands alone. The jump between middle and high school can be intimidating – as can any new chapter of one’s life – but this program offers reassurance that students will have many opportunities to flourish in their new environment. What a great way to build unity within Squalicum High School.
