One-on-one connections can make all the difference in a successful higher education journey, and a pair of peer mentoring programs at New Mexico State University have been nationally recognized.
The TRIO Student Support Services Classic peer mentoring program has been awarded recertification for the College Reading and Learning Association International Peer Educator Training Program through December 2030. The program has been certified at level three, the highest level possible, since fall 2016.
“Having someone to go to is important. Adulting can be intimidating for much of our student population, so having a peer going through things like you helps build a sense of community,” said Liz Taylor, TRIO SSS mentor coordinator. “Our peer staff teaches students how to ask questions and use the resources available to them through TRIO SSS and beyond while also sharing their students’ experiences to help improve NMSU systems and our program’s processes to make them more approachable for a new generation.”
The TRIO Student Support Services STEM-H peer mentoring program has been awarded level one CRLA-IPTPC recertification through December 2029.
“Our students in our TRIO STEM-H programs face some of the highest challenges academically as well as personally among the college campus populus,” said Jayce McCormick, TRIO SSS STEM-H academic success coordinator. “Education uplifts and challenges individuals to become the best versions of themselves and having even just one other individual in your corner rooting for you to persevere, that is substantially invaluable in the pursuit of personal achievement.”
Peer mentoring is free to TRIO SSS Classic and TRIO STEM-H participants and available in person at Hardman and Jacobs Undergraduate Learning Center, Room 128, and online via Zoom. Typically, TRIO SSS Classic has 10 mentors and interns, and TRIO SSS STEM-H has six mentors and tutors in their programs.
“The recertification of our mentoring program is one part of a larger program so seeing the work come to life in everyday interactions is a beautiful thing and we are grateful that TRIO SSS Classic, NMSU and CRLA recognize the value peer mentors bring to the higher education space,” Taylor said.
“This recertification stands as a testament to the work performed by our mentors in our program and how every single opportunity and challenge presented to them, they go above and beyond, striving for personal excellence and working toward the goal of becoming a more effective mentor,” McCormick said.
To learn more about the TRIO SSS Classic and TRIO SSS STEM-H programs at NMSU, visit https://triosss.nmsu.edu/index.html and https://stemh.nmsu.edu//index.html.