….And this is that check-in!
My Second-year project is being completed through my role as an ENR mentor. I have been working with my saplings to make them feel comfortable in the ENR program and make them feel like they have someone to ask questions of, if they should need to. My work as a mentor really began over the summer, when I first emailed or otherwise contacted my saplings to let them know that I would be serving as one of their mentors. I attended the ice-breaker meeting and Olentangy River service project, as well as the induction ceremony outside the Drake. I have been there to provide advice and guidance with regards to scheduling to my saplings, at times having long conversations to discus their options in the Engineering program at Ohio State. My last organized contact with my saplings was the Sapling-Mentor Interviews. These interviews proved to be a less-formal way for me to get to know my saplings better, especially since they were one-on-one interviews. During these interviews, I got a sense of how each first year was adjusting to their first semester at Ohio State. Albeit, these interviews had to take place just as midterms were beginning to pop up for all of us, which may have caused my saplings (as well as me) to be a little more on-edge, stressed, and tired than either party otherwise would have been. However, since my saplings are all either in engineering or are in classes I have taken previously, I was able to see their concerns and offer reassurance that they will be fine when the semester is all said and done. None of my saplings seem to be taking their coursework or the Ohio State experience poorly, which was reassuring to see. In fact, they all seemed very happy with their current spot, even if their coursework was a little overwhelming. I hope to continue to offer support and guidance to the saplings, and to continue to be there if they have any questions. It’s been a good experience so far!