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Pairing Up for Success
Harvard Graduate School of Education
July 1, 2004 |
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by Cara Feinberg
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SAMI participants
(©2004 Ed Malitsky) |
Last fall, when Amy Fenollosa, Ed.M.’03, and Eric Stone, Ed.M.’03,
in collaboration with the Office of Alumni Relations, announced a new
student-alumni mentoring program at HGSE, they were inundated with applications.
“We actually had more people than we could accommodate,” says
Fenollosa, who cofounded the Student-Alumni Mentoring Initiative (SAMI)
with Stone. “We were delighted by the strong interest of the alumni
and student body.”
Managed by the Office of Alumni Relations, SAMI is now completing its
pilot year. The 17 enthusiastic pairs selected for this first lineup—each
studying and working in dynamic fields such as higher education administration,
museum education, and educational technology—count themselves lucky.
“This has been the most successful and enjoyable mentorship program
that I’ve ever been a part of, by far,” says Marc Johnson,
Ed.M.’99. “The advisory board really worked hard to make good
matches.”
Emily Cain, who will earn her master’s in higher education this
June, was equally thrilled to have been paired with Johnson, the associate
director of alumni and parent programs at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine.
“Marc’s support has been invaluable,” she says. “He
has introduced me to so many people in the field, and even helped me to
set up an internship with people he knew in the Boston area.” Cain,
who lived in Maine for several years, says that she and Johnson found
they had a personal connection as well. “We love joking about the
trauma of being ‘foreigners’ in Maine,” she laughs,
recalling her adjustment to New England country life. “We bonded
right away.”
This nurturing relationship was precisely what Stone and Fenollosa hoped
to foster when they began developing the SAMI program a year ago. As master’s
students juggling heavy course loads and looming career decisions, they
recognized the advantages a mentor’s support and guidance could
offer. HGSE graduates are uniquely suited to provide students with veteran
perspectives. Academic choices, questions about campus and community life,
and professional decisions are all areas where alumni can offer advice.
But the benefits do not rest solely with the students, according to Julia
Hunter Cavanaugh, the director of alumni relations. “These relationships
have already opened up new dialogues and perspectives,” she says.
“It is a wonderful way to keep alums connected with the innovative
ideas, work, and people at the School.”
Eileen McGowan, an HGSE doctoral student in higher education who serves
on the SAMI advisory board, observes that this mutual benefit is a critical
dimension of the program’s future success. “Research shows
that good mentoring is regenerative,” says McGowan, who is studying
the impact of mentor relationships. “If students and alumni enjoy
productive relationships now, they are likely to return as mentors down
the line. This not only helps the mentors and the protégés,
but the field of education itself.”
Affirmation like this spurs on Stone and Fenollosa. “Right now we’re
looking at small changes that benefit individuals,” says Stone.
But their vision for the future is expansive. “We’d like to
extend the program in the coming years. We hope to include students and
alumni from other schools at Harvard in order to help participants make
cross-school connections in complementary fields.”
About the Article
A version of this article originally appeared in the Spring 2004 issue of Ed., the magazine of the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
HGSE News, Harvard Graduate School of Education
© 2008 President and Fellows of Harvard College.
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