Earning a college degree is challenging, and a burgeoning pandemic certainly doesn’t make the process any easier. Fortunately, the IU Northwest campus is full of students who use their time and talents to help their classmates. 

Angad Sidhu, president of the Student Government Association, saw a need to help first-year students acclimate to college coursework. "It was clear to me that something could be changed. The transition [to college] could be much better, much smoother," he said.

To meet this need, Sidhu started a peer mentoring program that allowed freshmen in an introductory biology class to meet with upperclassmen who had already successfully taken the same course. Not only could these freshmen get advice on how to study for tests, but they could also talk to their mentors about clubs and potential career paths.

In helping freshmen, mentors stand to gain a lot as well. "They get leadership experience, and the opportunity to hold a volunteering position. They can put on their resume [that they] helped incoming students," Sidhu said. He also notes that this type of experience outside of the classroom can be instrumental for getting accepted into graduate programs. 

With so much benefit to be had for both mentors and mentees, it didn’t take long before the peer mentoring program began branching out. This semester, mentors have started working with students in other biology classes, as well as English composition courses. 

Students helping students

But peer mentoring isn’t only beneficial when it comes to academics. Mercedes Andrade, president of the Kind Heart Society, found a new way to implement mentorship in her club. 

While members of the Kind Heart Society were once able to work with people with intellectual disabilities off-campus, the pandemic quickly threw a wrench into those plans. "We were thinking, how are we going to keep this running?" Andrade said. "So, we talked to TRIO Support Services, the campus’s office that works with students with disabilities."

Soon enough, Andrade had started her own on-campus peer mentoring program, with the support of TRIO, in which mentors and mentees could meet over Zoom to talk about their goals, challenges, and more. 

"Our mentors focus on the goals of the mentee," Andrade said. "Everyone has different majors; some people might want to get involved more. We’re not there to be a tutor, but to help them get connected with the resources they need to succeed as an IU Northwest student."

It seems no matter what kind of mentoring a student needs on the Northwest campus, there is someone more than willing to extend a hand…and heart. Both Sidhu and Andrade report enormous personal benefits to helping others. 

"Positive remarks about the program have made me super happy. The program mentors and I were able to do something good for our fellow students, especially in a time where help is needed, perhaps, more than ever," Sidhu said.

As a pandemic adds even more stress to the college experience, it can be tempting to turn inward and only worry about meeting one’s own needs. But Sidhu and Andrade’s tireless work is proof that IU Northwest remains a community that takes care of its own, for the benefit of all. Now, that’s heart. ❤️