Thanking mentors

Throughout November, the Office of Engaged Scholarship & Learning hosted its first Thank-A-Mentor Campaign. Students were asked to submit a short biography along with a picture of them and their faculty mentor.

“I really believe that this campaign offers students an opportunity to show that gratitude,” said Robert Longoria, a programs specialist for Student Academic Success. “With this campaign, we wanted to celebrate empathy. I believe that everybody has a mentor in their lives, either formal or informal, but this really offers students the opportunity to showcase people that inspired them, showcase people that believe in them. I really believe that this is a platform towards normalizing mentorship on campus.”

Social media (via Facebook and Instagram) and UTRGV Student Messenger helped the program gain attention.

“We have a lot of faculty that work with us to help provide opportunities for students, and it’s November. It’s the month of graciousness and gratitude and it’s just an opportunity that we can give to students to pay it forward to our faculty mentors,” said Daniel Warner, a student assistant for Engaged Scholarship & Learning.

The Office of Engaged Scholarship & Learning plans to continue the campaign each November.

One of the biographies was written by political science senior Karina Guerrero.

“I would like to thank Dr. Angel Saavedra for being a great mentor. I reached out to him for feedback on a research paper I had written for his class, and I got a lot more feedback than I thought I’d ever get! He was very excited about my topic and encouraged me to look into the [Engaged Scholarship Award] program to continue my research. If it weren’t for him, I probably would have never known about this awesome opportunity to fund my research. His enthusiasm and affirmation about my ideas was humbling, and I’ve been motivated to tackle the sometimes scary process of doing research. I can’t thank him enough for his support and motivation.”