A national first for University of Teesside Mentors

The first cohort of student mentors from a national government project will receive certificates of achievement at a special ceremony at the University of Teesside on Monday 19 June from 12 noon-12.30pm.

The 90 mentors, all students at the University, are the first in the country to be awarded the certificates, which have been signed by the Secretary of State for Education and Employment, David Blunkett. They will receive the certificates from the University of Teesside's Deputy Vice-Chancellor Helen Pickering and Barrie Kennard, Technical Services Manager for the National Mentor project. There will be an opportunity to photograph some of the Mentors at 12.30pm in the Innovation and Virtual Reality Centre Lecture Theatre, off Stephenson Street, Middlesbrough (behind the Evening Gazette offices).

The National Mentoring Pilot Project was launched by the Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) last year in five Universities, including Teesside, and has recently expanded to 14 Universities. The Teesside students have worked one-to-one with pupils from nine schools in the East Cleveland and East Middlesbrough Education Action Zones (EAZs), mainly in the 13-15 age group. They have covered a range of activities, which aim to raise the pupils' aspirations, build self-esteem and develop learning skills.

David Littlefair, Project Director for the DfEE at the University of Teesside said: "The University students and the Secondary pupils have gained a lot. The mentors learn important skills and use their experience of education to help the pupils reflect and gain confidence. It's helpful for the pupils as they can talk and get support from someone who is not a teacher or a parent, at a stressful time in their education."

---