Building a Peer Mentoring
Program For Transfer Students
From the Ground Up
Presented by Mary Von Kaenel, Associate Director for Transfer
Academic Programs Clemson University
Charlotte Jenkins, Transfer Council Director
Hannah Newton, Transfer Council Assistant Director
Today’s session
 Welcome and Introductions
 Overview of Campus Mentoring Programs
 T2T Transfer to Tigers
 New Approach: Academic Course as Framework
 Timeline: Development to Present
 Course Information
 Undergraduate Research
 Preliminary Data
Clemson University
 4-Year
Public Research Institution
 15,000
undergraduates
 70+
undergraduate majors
 3,500+
graduate students
 1500
new transfer students each year
 3300
new freshmen each year
T2T Mentoring Program
 Transfers
 Transfer
 Broad
to Tigers
Council Student Government
program focused on email
connections to new transfers
 Minimal
 Basic
peer interaction
Training
Why A Peer Mentoring Program?
 Research
suggests peer interactions
important for student success
 Peer
mentors = popular support for new
student programs
 Benefits
new students: more direct
connections to peers
 Ease
transition issues
Campus Mentoring Programs
 Program
overlap – multiple programs on
campus
 Each
 No
program independent
standard mentor training—each program
responsible for their own
Ground-Up Approach
 Design
a new method for developing peer
mentors
 Undergraduate
 Teach
Research Component
students effective peer to peer
mentoring techniques
 Collaborate
instead of compete
Academic Framework:
Creative inquiry
 Creative
 Already
7
Inquiry academic course
established rubrics
Mentoring Programs Collaborated
 Two-semester
sequence Undergraduate
Research
 Over
300 CI projects currently at Clemson
Creative Inquiry
Timeline: Development Process
Fall 2011
Initial Interest Meeting
Spring 2012
First Course Taught
Fall 2012
Research Course
Sequence Begins
Spring 2013
Research Completed
Fall 2011
 Dr. Speziale CI Program Director
 Hosted 1st Interest meeting ~ 12
programs interested
 7 Mentor Programs collaborated
 Developed curriculum and syllabus
for 1st course
Spring 2012
 First
6
Mentor Training Course taught
week session in the Spring semester
 15
mentors for transfer students
 Total
class all mentors ~ 50+
 Face
to Face class meeting each week
Fall 2012
 Students
from the training course Spring
2012
 Beginning
research course
 Mentoring
activities focused on
connecting to new transfers
Spring 2013
 2nd
Semester research on transfer students
 Academic
Course will include conducting
Focus Groups
 Roles






within Focus Groups:
Note-taker
Attendance
Room set-up
Food and incentives
Technical support and recorder
Final Project on Display at April Event for CI
Projects
Course Materials
 Textbook
Students Helping Students
A Guide for Peer Educators
on College Campuses
2nd Edition
Newton & Ender
Research Materials
Focus Group Kit Series
6 Books on Qualitative
Research
Mentors
Academic Work
Qualitative
Research on
Transfer Student
Group
Peer Mentor for new
Transfer Students
Contact logs with
data
Undergraduate Research

Academic Assignments centered around research

Completed Human Subjects Research Training
Course online

Literature Review

Focus Group Questions

IRB draft

Mock Focus Group

Observations of Mentees
Student Mentors
 Charlotte
Jenkins

Director Transfer Council

Senior, Secondary Education Math
 Hannah
Newton

Assistant Director Transfer Council

Senior, Wildlife and Fisheries Biology
Preliminary Observations
 Mentors
in CI Course had more consistent
contact with new students
 Log
data indicate the most popular
methods of communication were:
 Email
 Text
 Facebook
 Twitter
 Peer
to Peer interactions varied
due to mentor, mentee schedules
 Variations
Some
also within mentors
more persistent
Anecdotal
feedback from mentees
positive
Qualitative
responses to be included
in final project Spring 2013
CI Course Results

All Transfer Mentors completed and passed

Developed skills in these areas:

Group interactions via course assignments

Writing: preliminary interview protocol for focus
groups

Problem solving: working to make connections
to new students
Next Steps

IRB submission February 2013

Student mentors conduct Focus Groups
March 2013

Data analysis March 2013

Final Presentation April 2013

Mentors continuing to work with mentees

New group of students taking 1st course
February 2013 8 week session
Questions?