Honors Mentor Programs

The Honors Mentor Program is a unique leadership development opportunity designed specifically for John Martinson Honors College students.

The mission of the Honors Mentor Program is two-fold. First, the program provides peer mentorship to Honors students enrolled in the first-year HonorsExperience. Peer mentors help teams of first-year students complete World Readiness Lab assignments, facilitating deep conversations and collaborative activities. Peer mentors welcome these new students into the JMHC community and help them transition to college life.

Second, the Honors Mentor Program provides its peer mentors with an enriched leadership development experience. The program’s unique curriculum couples the experience of project-team leadership with structured reflection, feedback, and self-directed learning activities. Mentors work closely with Honors faculty.In this way, student leaders are given the tools they need to succeed in their roles, to maximize their learning, and to take ownership of their leadership development moving forward.

Contact honorscollegementors@purdue.edu with any questionsabout the application process.

Our Approach to Leadership

The Honors Mentor Program follows a transformational approach towards leadership, with emphasis on empowerment, engagement, and inclusion. Each interaction is an opportunity for promoting teamwork and leadership skills, both for first-year students collaborating on course projects and for mentors developing their own personal style of leadership. The Honors Mentor Program has a strong community of peer support, and mentors are encouraged to develop peer networks, engage in program activities, and take agency in shaping the program. At all levels of the program, the importance of inclusion is paramount, with a recognition that inclusion requires empathy, social responsibility, and a willingness to act on behalf of others.

The Honors Mentor Experience

Spring Semester

Curricular Experience: First-time mentors enroll in HONR 29900: Foundations of Mentorship to gain fundamental skills for serving as a mentor in the fall.

HONR 29900: Foundations of Mentorship
In Foundations of Mentorship, a 1-credit asynchronous course that takes place in the second 8 weeks of the spring semester, first-time mentors will learn fundamental skills and concepts that will prepare you for peer mentorship in the classroom. You will understand foundational ideas about leadership, including the leadership competency language used by the Honors Mentor Program, and you will assess your current skills and set goals for your development. You will complete training in belonging, inclusion, and allyship that will help you develop self-awareness of how your personal identity shapes your approach to leadership, as well as gaining practical skills in facilitating tough conversations in a group setting. Finally, you will have to opportunity to develop positive relationships with the team of fellow mentors with whom you will collaborate during the fall semester.

Returning mentors (those who have been in the program 1 year or more) are NOT required to take HONR 29900. It is only required for first-time mentors. Returning mentors assist in conducting interviews for new applicants to the program in February.

Extracurricular Experience: The Honors Mentor Program community can only thrive when mentors invest in both the academic and extracurricular components of the program. Mentors play an active role in shaping the community that supports our program.

During the second 8 weeks of the semester, all mentors are expected to participate in the program’s extracurricular activities for a minimum of 4 hours (this averages to 30 minutes/week).

Fall Semester

Curricular Experience: In the fall, mentors enroll in HONR 29901: Honors Mentors, which provides an opportunity for mentors to reflect on their hands-on experience of facilitating teamwork for a group of first-year students as well as discussion-based learning about leadership. HONR 29901: Honors Mentors is a 2-credit course that occurs in the first 8 weeks of the fall semester.

Additionally, mentors participate in an annual program Orientation that takes place the Sunday before the start of fall classes.

HONR 29901: Honors Mentors
Honors Mentors provides students with the opportunity to gain leadership skills through experience, structured learning, and reflection. In Honors Mentors you will put your leadership skills into practice by coaching teams of 6-to-8 students in the first year seminar course. Our weekly Honors Mentors meeting provides a structured environment in which we will discuss as a group key aspects of your leadership development. Course materials provide a jumping off point from which we will consider different components of leadership, and you will strategize how to best help your team succeed. Each week on Brightspace, you will reflect on your experiences leading your team that week, set personal and team goals, and assess your growth as a leader.

Extracurricular Experience: For the first 8 weeks of the fall semester, all mentors are expected to participate in the program’s extracurricular activities for a minimum of 4 hours (which averages to 30 minutes/week).

What experience can I expect as an Honors Mentor?

Curricular Experience: Mentors enroll in HONR 299: Honors Mentors, which provides instruction on recitation activities as well as leadership development. HONR 299 meets once a week for the first eight weeks of the Fall semester. Mentors also attend a section of HONR 19901, which meets twice a week for the first eight weeks of the Fall semester. Mentors choose an HONR 299/19901 pairing that works for their schedule. For this commitment, mentors receive 2 credits.

Extracurricular Experience: Returning mentors are expected to participate in the interview process for program applicants in February. Other extracurricular opportunities such as coffee hours, workshops, etc., are offered by the Mentor Council starting in March, which are designed to help program participants further develop their skills and build a healthy mentor community. Mentors are expected to commit at least 30 minutes a week to engaging with the program’s extracurricular offerings.

Honors Mentor Roles & Learning Outcomes

Mentors serve teams of first-year students in the HONR 19901 courses, which involves six interrelated roles:

  • Mentors welcome first-year students into the Honors College community, helping its newest members gain a sense of belonging and understand the purpose and values of the college.
  • Mentors facilitate the healthy development of project teams and the successful completion of shared goals, i.e. course activities and projects.
  • Mentors assist Honors faculty in promoting first-year learning outcomes of collaboration, critical thinking, and interdisciplinary awareness.
  • Mentors take agency in their own development by learning leadership competencies, realizing their unique strengths, and applying strategies for developing their leadership knowledge and skills.
  • Mentors build community within the program, which creates an environment for solidarity and internal mentorship.
  • Mentors support the growth of other mentors by being attentive and empathetic; they provide ample amounts of encouragement and positive reinforcement; and they share freely their struggles, successes, and insights with one another

Through the performance of these roles, mentors achieve the following learning outcomes, which represent essential leadership practices:

  • Mentors will be able to facilitate healthy group development and create a strong, inclusive team culture.
  • Mentors will be able to communicate and lead others toward a shared purpose and goals.
  • Mentors will be able to develop teamwork and leadership skills in others.
  • Mentors will be able to employ strategies for self-understanding and continued leadership learning.

Mentors will gain knowledge of leadership competency language, which will allow them to better understand team and leadership development and more readily discuss it with others within and outside the program. Click here for a PDF of the Honors Mentor Program leadership competencies.