09/23/21
Opportunity for Honors College students to be mentored by the Distinguished Visiting Scholars
Posted by Tim on September 23, 2021 in Academics, Alumni, Networking
Students who participated in the circles last year reported receiving much needed personal, academic, and professional support and enjoying their (virtual) interactions with both their scholar-mentor and peers during an unprecedented time. Many of the bonds formed have endured. This year, we expect the value of the scholars’ mentoring to be even greater as we are afforded in-person, as well as virtual, opportunities to interact.
Eligibility:
Any UB-enrolled undergraduate (or graduate) student, including those studying remotely, regardless of field of study. Students can choose a preferred mentor who is in any field; the student need not be in the scholar’s discipline or field.
Structure:
Each scholar will lead a 10-student graduate mentoring circle and a 10-student undergraduate circle. Each circle will meet (virtually and in-person, following COVID protocols) at least three times/semester as a group. (Scholars will meet individually with student mentees as the scholars and students choose.) The circles will be in place for the full academic year, although students expecting to graduate in December are welcome to participate while enrolled.
Activities:
Scholars and their mentees will determine the events of interest to their group, but the aim is to engage in activities that support students in their personal, academic, and professional lives and are (for lack of a better word) fun as well as edifying. Virtual participation will be possible in many if not all events/activities.
Examples: film watch parties; attending live and virtual performances; outdoor gatherings; tours of historic and culturally significant sites in Buffalo; gallery and museum visits (virtually and/or in person); readings and discussions; group attendance at UB events; and virtual networking and professional conference attendance.
We are particularly attentive to the potential benefits to minoritized students at UB of connecting with the scholars who are themselves from historically underrepresented groups in academia and deeply invested in contributing to all students’ sense of belonging at UB.
How Students Can Sign Up:
Students complete a brief survey about themselves and rank order their preferred mentors. The preliminary deadline is Monday, October 11th but as new surveys are received, students will continue to be “matched” to mentors until circles are full. The survey also provides students with a link to a box folder where student can entirely optionally submit a more detailed statement regarding their personal goals/interests to any of the preferred mentors they selected.
Here is the mentoring circle webpage you can direct students to: https://www.buffalo.edu/diversity-innovation/distinguished-visiting-scholars/mentoring-circles.html. That webpage also contains the link to the survey application ( https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DVSMentoring ) and a link to the scholar bios (https://www.buffalo.edu/diversity-innovation/distinguished-visiting-scholars/cohort.html ). Here is a link to a PDF flyer (with QR and other means to access the webpage) which (should you choose) you can print and post or distribute in other form: https://www.buffalo.edu/content/dam/www/diversity-innovation/documents/Mentoring%20Flyer_Sept%2021.pdf .
Thank you for your support of the DVS program and these mentoring opportunities for students. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to email me at: maurabel@buffalo.edu, stop by Clemens 638a, or call 645-6038.
