The Red Bull to Mentoring! It will give you wings!!

Raul Garcia • Cahn Fellow 2021

Like so many schools across the Nation, Southwood Middle School was significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Since March 13, 2020, class instruction has vastly changed as teachers have had to increase their use of technology and reinvent practices to meet the countless obstacles present in distance learning. In the midst of the pandemic, 43% of Southwood’s families opted to attend school virtually. The challenges students faced at home, as they navigated their educational process, caused turbulence in their development. Many students faced depression due to isolation, loss of loved ones, connectivity issues, and lack of motivation. 

The eminent challenge we faced in the 2021-2022 school year was to meet the academic and social-emotional needs of these students as they returned to school physically. Our Cahn Fellow study of practice focused on initiating a Mentoring Program to accelerate academic, emotional, and social growth of students. We researched school site Best Practices, identified learning gaps, remediated learning loss, and simultaneously provided counseling. This undertaking encompassed the collaborative efforts of our entire learning community as we initiated a targeted student-specific mentoring program. This was a challenge we were committed to undertake to ensure all students were provided with the skills necessary for success. Through this process we rejuvenated our professional spirits and gained priceless insight from the Cahn Fellows Program experience.