by Grace Walker

Emma Chandler always wanted to be a teacher. She loved working with kids but she was worried she wouldn’t make enough money in the field. But when the intense STEM curriculum of her initial major, dietetics, persisted in making her miserable, she realized the importance of following through on her passions. 

She made the switch to elementary education at the end of her freshman year, and discovered College Mentors for Kids.

College Mentors for Kids is a nonprofit organization at colleges across the U.S. where college students are partnered with elementary school students from local Title I schools to foster confidence, broaden their horizons and expose them to different activities and interests, according to their website.

Each mentor at the University of Maryland is assigned a little buddy, a student from Whittier Elementary School in D.C.. Every Tuesday, the kids are bussed to the University of Maryland for an activity. The activities are organized by different clubs and organizations on campus. In the past, they have paired with Maryland Images, Terps Against Hunger and Gymkana, the gymnasium inside the School of Public Health. 

Chandler, now a sophomore, joined College Mentors this semester. She met her little buddy, a first-grader named James, about a month ago. 

“When he comes to activities on Tuesdays, I greet him from the bus, we have a snack, we talk about how his week was and what he’s done, and then we do the activity together,” Chandler said.

One of Chandler’s favorite College Mentors activities was when they partnered with UMD’s Community Learning Garden. Together, Chandler and James walked around, spent time with the other little buddies and their mentors and showed each other different things around the garden. After they finished their activity for the week, they played some games and the kids were given time to write in their journals about anything they’d like.

This week, College Mentors had their last activity of the semester. The little buddies and their mentors got together for a game night and to say goodbye. They won’t be back together again until February.

Title I is the U.S.’s largest federally funded educational program. It provides supplemental funds to school districts to assist schools that have a large population of low income students to help meet their educational goals. Schools with at least 40% of students from low income families are eligible for Title I funding, according to the U.S. Department of Education. . 

The week before they visited the community garden, College Mentors partnered with Maryland Images, and the kids were given a tour of campus. 

At the same time, Chandler said, it’s important that mentors don’t try to force the idea of going to college on their little buddies. 

“We are not suggesting that it is the correct route for them, but we want to show them what it’s like so that it’s one of their options.” 

Aahna Ghosh, a senior government and politics major, has been involved in College Mentors since she was a freshman. Her current little buddy is Aaminah, a fourth-grader at Whittier Elementary School, and they’ve gotten along well. 

“We honestly click really well. She’s very outgoing, so it’s easy to build off of her and get her engaged in all of the activities,” Ghosh said.

This semester is the first in over a year that kids like Aaminah were on campus again. During the pandemic, College Mentors had to make due with virtual activities. It brought a lot of challenges, both for the mentors and their little buddies.

“Over Zoom, it was hard to make sure that they were staying attentive because they’re in their rooms, so they can get distracted and be on their phones,” says Ghosh. “We still tried to do the same type of activities with different lessons each week, but the interactive part of being in person makes it so much easier to build a connection.” 

Chandler said her favorite part of being a mentor is how rewarding and gratifying it is andthe strong community she’s been able to connect with. Chandler says she will never forget the time James told her he loved her and that she was the best mentor ever. 

“I just love being able to be there for him and be someone that he can look to for advice,” she said.

Featured image: Aahna Ghosh and her buddy, Aaminah. Photo courtesy of Aahna Ghosh.