Welcome to the “Mentoring
Matters” presentation!
During the presentation we will be asking
interactive poll questions. If you would like to
participate in the polls, please send a text to
37607 with the message “jmputmancsu” to
join our poll group.
Mentoring Matters: Promoting Mentoring Relationships for your
Students and Self
Jill Putman
NACADA Annual Conference – October 2016
Presentation Outline:
– No “silver bullet”
• Time for discussion, reflection, and consideration
– What is mentoring and why is it important?
– Example mentoring programs in Geosciences Department at Colorado State University
– Taking our own advice
What is Mentoring?
• Previous studies (Jacobi, 1991 and Crisp & Cruz, 2009)
have discussed absence of a common definition of
mentoring across research literature.
• Some common themes identified:
– Relationship focused on individual growth
– Access to support and resources
– Relationships are personal and reciprocal
• Gray area around duration, title/expertise level of mentor
For Today’s Discussion:
• Mentoring is defined as a meaningful, mutually
reciprocal, and beneficial relationship between
two or more individuals. This relationship is
characterized by the sharing of resources, the
emphasis on personal and professional
development, and active engagement in a
continual learning and growth process for all
parties involved.
What is Mentoring?
• Coaching vs. mentoring
• Mentorship vs. sponsorship
Who are Mentors?
Discussion:
ARE ADVISORS MENTORS?
Why do we care?
• 2014 Gallup-Purdue Index Report:
– Alumni who reported having a professor that cared about
them as a person, a professor who made them excited about
learning and a mentor who provided encouragement had
more than double the odds of being engaged at work. *Only
14% of all graduates reporting having all three
– 22% report having a mentor who encouraged me to pursue
my goals and dreams (2.2x more engaged at work and 1.7x
higher odds of thriving in areas of well-being)
– Reports of mentorship also related to greater emotional
attachment to alma mater
Mentoring Research
• Mentored research program for STEM students (Haeger & Fresquez, 2016)
• Applications for online students (Harrell, 2008), need for interaction and support (Ludwig-Hardman & Dunlap, 2003)
• Underrepresented racial/ethnic minority students
– Assist with managing stressors
– Facilitate persistence, more positive perception of university environment (Bordes & Arredondo, 2005)
• Assist with academic and social integration into institution for community college students, goal commitment to persist (Crisp, 2010)
Benefits of Mentoring
MENTEES
• Academic achievement (Haeger & Fresquez, 2016 and
Good, Halpin & Halpin, 2000)
• Self-confidence and critical
thinking (Erkut & Mokros, 1984)
• Positive behavioral,
attitudinal, health-related,
interpersonal, motivational
and career outcomes (Eby, et
al., 2008)
MENTORS
• Kupenda, 2016:
– Career
validation/confirmation
– Promotion of student allies
– Building a legacy
• Good, Halpin & Halpin,
2000: (Peer mentoring)
– Learning strategies, GPA,
knowledge of content,
personal skills, greater
connection to community
Mentoring Research
• Additional empirically based, methodologically rigorous,
and theoretically sound research studies needed (Crisp
& Cruz, 2009)
• Hierarchical nature of traditional mentor/mentee roles
can create confusion or detrimental power dynamics,
particularly with peer mentoring relationships (Colvin &
Ashman, 2010)
Diversity of Mentoring Models
• Formal vs. informal (planned vs. spontaneous)
• Peer vs. faculty vs. professional
• Individual vs. team/mentoring circles
• In-person vs. virtual/remote/distance
• Goals established vs. organic process
– Crisp & Cruz, 2009
Mentoring Programs in
Gesociences Department at
Colorado State University
Geosciences Department at CSU
• ~180 Undergraduate Students, ~60 graduate students
• .75 FTE Academic Success Coordinator
• 14.5 Tenure-Track Faculty
• STEM discipline
– Calculus, Chemistry, Physics
• Student demographics
– Few students of color, low percentage of women in major
– Veteran, non-traditional, transfer student representation
– ~17% first-generation, 20% Pell-eligible
Faculty Mentor Program
• Undergraduate students assigned faculty mentor by ASC
• Students are required to see ASC, encouraged to see
faculty mentor
• Receive assignments within first two weeks of semester
• Welcome letter on behalf of faculty
• Continual “nudging” throughout semester
– Infographic
– Email etiquette
– Discussed in advising appointment
Faculty Mentor Program
• No formal training provided to faculty– Some informal requests for assistance
• Independently-initiated major
concentration gatherings
Grad/Undergrad Program
• Developed as a result of graduate student request
• Piloted in SP15 as semester program
• Volunteer program
• Mentors must apply and attend “training”
• Mentees apply and must attend initial program meeting
• Addition of group activities (planned by ASC)
• End of year recognition event
• Program evaluation
Grad/Undergrad Program• “I enjoyed the chance to connect with other people besides
undergraduates in the department. I feel like graduate and
undergraduate students sometimes fall only into a teacher-student
relationship, and this program gave us the opportunity to have a
different kind of interaction.”
• “I would and have already suggested the program to both graduate
and undergraduate students. First of all is a great way to network
students within the department in a relaxed environment. I will also
suggest the mentoring program because as a transfer student it was
an amazing opportunity to create rapport with faculty, staff and
students that I was unable to do if I started at CSU.”
First-Generation Community Mentoring
• Initiatives developed to address needs identified through
retention/graduation data at CSU
• Identification of first-generation faculty and staff
members
• Letter to students
• Invitation to pizza lunch
• Promotion of undergraduate research, department
positions
Lessons Learned
• “Forced” mentorship and personality mis-match
• Training and development of mentors (faculty and
students)
• Power dynamics, particularly with graduate students
• Success of organic and informal programs and
relationships
• Program models with peers and alumni
• Low-cost initiatives
• “You can lead a horse to water…”
THINK – PAIR – SHARE
What mentoring initiatives do you
currently use or promote in your role?
How do you encourage/coach students to
find and utilize mentors?
TAKING OUR OWN ADVICE
Reflection Activity
Resources
• http://www.case.edu/facultydevelopment/media/caseedu/
faculty-development/Full-mentoring-workbook-for-PDF-
link.pdf
• https://hr.osu.edu/public/documents/learning-
development/mentoring-mentor-toolkit-%20final-508.pdf
• http://www.cod.edu/teleconf/soaring/pdf%20files/mentor
worksheet.pdf
• http://www.adapp-advance.msu.edu/Faculty-Mentoring-
Toolkit-
Resources%20for%20Mentors%20and%20Mentees
ReferencesBordes, V. & Arredondo, P. (2005). Mentoring and 1st-year Latina/o college students. Journal of Hispanic Higher Education, 4, 114-133.
Colvin, J.W. & Ashman, M. (2010). Roles, risks, and benefits of peer mentoring relationships in higher education. Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnerships in Learning, 18, 121-134.
Crisp, G. (2010). The impact of mentoring on the success of community college students. The Review of Higher Education, 34, 39-60.
Crisp, G., & Cruz, I. (2009). Mentoring college students: A critical review of the literature between 1990 and 2007. Research in Higher Education, 50, 525-545.
Darwin, A., & Palmer, E. (2009). Mentoring circles in higher education. Higher Education Research and Development, 28, 125-136.
Eby, L. T., Allen, T. D., Evans, S. C., Ng, T. & DuBois, D. L. (2008). Does mentoring matter?: A multidisciplinary meta-analysis comparing mentored and non-mentored individuals. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 72, 254-267.
ReferencesErkut, S., & Mokros, J. R. (1984). Professors as models and mentors for college students. American Educational Research Journal, 21, 399-417.
Gallup-Purdue Index Report. (2014). Great jobs, great lives: A study of more than 30,000 college graduates across the U.S.
Good, J.M., Halpin, G., & Halpin. G. (2000). A promising prospect for minority retention: Students becoming peer mentors. The Journal of Negro Education, 69, 375-383.
Haeger, H., & Fresquez, C. (2016). Mentoring for inclusion: The impact of mentoring on undergraduate researchers in the sciences. CBE – Life Sciences Education, 15:ar36, 1-9.
Harrell, I.L. (2008). Increasing the success of online students. Inquiry: The Journal of the Virginia Community Colleges, 13, 36-44.
Kupenda, A. M. (2016) Mentoring pluses for underrepresented faculty. Diverse Issues in Higher Education, (http://diverseeducation.com/article/85249).
Ludwig-Hardman, S. & Dunlap, J.C. (2003). Learning support services for online students: Scaffolding for success. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 4.