Mentoring
We are still welcoming new mentors! Please click the button to submit your information. Thank you!
The Breaching Barriers mentoring program is a school/community partnership that connects college-educated community members, particularly empty-nesters and retirees, with students and families who would benefit from early intervention and support with both planning for college and the college search process.
The goal of the Breaching Barriers program is to improve equity by providing additional coaching and mentorship throughout the college planning, search, and application process, particularly for students facing one or more barriers to postsecondary education.
The program will support Monomoy Regional High School students and their families by:
- offering college planning mentorship and parent engagement beginning as early as 9th grade;
- helping families understand college costs, financing options, scholarship availability, and how they and their student can make college an affordable and realistic option;
- coordinating and leading on-campus tours at colleges in the Northeast region on weekends and vacations, and
- connecting well-educated and caring empty-nesters, retirees, and community members who have experience in the college process with the students and families who could most benefit from this expertise and knowledge.
The Breaching Barriers program is overseen by the district’s Community Engagement Coordinator in close conjunction with the high school guidance counseling team to supplement the robust college counseling process already in place.
Through outreach to various community groups, a Breaching Barriers Team of volunteer mentors will be developed. All potential mentors will undergo CORI checks and will take part in training sessions. Members of the Breaching Barriers Team would take on one or more of the following roles:
- support students & families in understanding higher education finance and personal finance;
- support students with editorial support in writing college essays and help students and their families through the admissions process;
- mentorship of individual students and their parents/caregivers through the college search and application process; and
- organize and lead tours of New England colleges.
The students will be paired with a Breaching Barriers mentor who would begin meeting with the student and family as early as freshman year, providing academic coaching and financial planning for college. This support would ramp up heading into senior year to include:
- support with visiting colleges;
- support with the college essay and application process; and
- support with the financial aid process.
If you are interested in participating in the Breaching Barriers program as a college mentor, click here to complete the application form. If you have any questions, contact MRSD Community Engagement Coordinator Joy Jordan at jjordan@monomoy.edu or 617-848-0565.