College Mentors Launches College Connection, New Middle School Program

After considerable planning and preparation, activities for the Indianapolis site of College Connection are ready to begin Monday and Tuesday, November 17 and 18!  For the inaugural activity, seven college student mentors from Butler University will travel to Emma Donnan Middle School, the College Connection partner school in Indianapolis.  Weekly activities over the course of the year will focus on three areas- personal, academic, and career development.  College Connection’s ultimate goal is to promote youth development of academic skills while building self-confidence.

College Connection is a program of College Mentors for youth in grades five through eight, intended to extend mentoring services to graduates of the elementary program, College Mentors for Kids.  Unlike College Mentors for Kids, College Connection will take place at the middle school, and instead of one-on-one mentoring, college students will be placed with a group of five middle-schoolers for a more discussion-based setting.  In its inaugural year, College Connection will take place at two sites: in Indianapolis, at Emma Donnan Middle School with college student mentors from Butler University; and Muncie, at Delta Middle School, with mentors from Ball State University.  Both sites will serve 30 youth this year.

“This is an important step for College Mentors as we extend our services beyond elementary school students,” said Emily Reid, senior associate program director for College Connection.  “We are excited that College Connection is ready to get underway and grateful to everyone who has made this program possible.”

College Mentors recently received significant funding from two local foundations in support of College Connection in Indianapolis.  The College Readiness Fund, a CICF Fund, and the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust awarded College Mentors with grants of $30,000 and $75,000, respectively.

Established in 2008 with a grant from Lumina Foundation for Education, the College Readiness Fund's goal is to improve high school graduation rates and increase the number of students that attend and succeed in college.  Specifically, the College Readiness Fund supports Marion County organizations that help low-income, first-generation college students gain the academic skills needed to prepare for college and navigate the college application process. In its first-ever grant cycle the College Readiness Fund awarded $510,000 to 10 nonprofits.

The Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust was established upon the death of Nina Mason Pulliam on March 26, 1997, to support the causes she loved in her home states of Arizona and Indiana.  The Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust seeks to help people in need, especially women, children and families; to protect animals and nature; and to enrich community life primarily in metropolitan Phoenix and Indianapolis.

College Mentors is grateful to both the College Readiness Fund and the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust for their support of our mission of inspiring, educating and connecting youth to opportunities for the future.