When student-athletes act as mentors, everyone wins. Those athletes learn how to become better leaders, their mentees learn valuable life lessons, and their communities experience the benefits of young leaders.
Michael Karcher, PhD, is the author of Increases in Academic Connectedness and Self-Esteem Among High School Students Who Serve as Cross-Age Peer Mentors. He writes that when “students themselves assist in the delivery of guidance lessons and learning experiences for other students, the number of students affected by the developmental guidance program may be greatly magnified or doubled.”
Here’s practical advice on how to launch a peer mentoring program at your school or on your team.
Connect the dots
Peer mentorship programs can exist in a broad spectrum of forms, but athletic teams are naturally suited for setting up this kind of mentorship. Take the already-developed social role of teammates and let student-athletes shift it from teammate to mentor.
