The importance of mentoring for fostering diversity

Check out my post on this topic over at the Women in Astronomy Blog. An excerpt:

Mentoring is distinct from teaching and academic advising, but not necessarily separate. An academic adviser or teacher can serve as a mentor, but in my mind the processes of advising and teaching are separate from the process of mentoring. Mentoring is based on a personal relationship, often with someone with a set of shared experiences. The mentor's role is to serve as a guide for the mentee, to help them develop professionally and personally.

Comments

EAB said…

Well said. Let me just add that the same need exists in many elite high schools. We work to recruit and admit students from various underrepresented populations. However, once they're admitted, many of these same students feel like they're in a foreign country because of an enormous cultural difference between their background and the school. We have found that they need ongoing mentorship to help them reach their potential as students. As a benefit to us, they become more engaged with the life of the school outside the classroom, which helps us to achieve the goal of be a diverse community.

August 14, 2013 at 2:25 PM

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