Program Coordinator, Marci Poston, with the St. Johns County Education Foundation, informed Historic City News local reporters that she is currently seeking volunteers to become mentors to students in middle and high school as part of the Take Stock in Children Program.
Mentors meet with students in order to help them acquire skills to transition into college and a future career.
Take Stock in Children is an innovative state-wide organization that strives to “break the cycle of poverty one child at a time by offering guidance, scholarship, mentors and hope.” The program has achieved success in increasing high school graduation rates and expanding college enrollment opportunities for qualified students. Mentors meet with their student starting in seventh grade and continue to meet through twelfth grade.
“My mentor is great. Every time I see her she is very open about what we talk about. She is supportive and caring of me, and it always makes me happy when I see her,” said a student from Switzerland Point Middle School about her mentor.
Poston is looking for mentors that have a desire to positively influence a student’s life as they move through grade school and into college.
“It takes time and dedication, but the experience is rewarding for each party involved,” Poston told Historic City News. “Many students say they enjoy their mentor because they can talk about anything from academics to what it is like growing up.”
Another student from Pedro Menendez High School said, “My mentor helps me through school and also helps me with everyday life lessons. He has been an amazing mentor and teacher to me.”
Mentors find the experience equally rewarding. “I know first-hand that mentoring does make a difference and mentors can significantly and positively impact young lives,” stated Shelley Whitman, a mentor who has been in St. Johns County since 1992.
For more information regarding the Take Stock in Children program or to become a mentor, please contact Poston by calling (904) 547-7121.
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