As a member of The Ohio State University’s Environment and Natural Resources (ENR) Scholars Program, I am required to complete a 2nd year project. I chose to select my role as a mentor as my 2nd year project. As a mentor, I am required to attend multiple meetings each month with the first years, attend a minimum of three events each semester, go on the Hocking Hills camping trip, review each post that my saplings write on their ePortfolios, and do my best to connect with my saplings in whatever way works best. A personal goal of mine is to connect with whichever of my saplings decide that they want me to be more of a resource in their lives. However, I do realize that not all of them will actively reach out to me for help as they may not want or need my help in this transition. One of my main hopes is that this project will positively affect both myself and others. I specifically hope that my saplings will benefit from my project through my help in their transition to college. As a mentor, I will be attending various events throughout the semester, so I hope that I can help other first years in ENR that are not my saplings if we happen to connect. As a result of helping others, I will benefit simply by knowing that I had a positive impact in the lives of others. Impacting others while getting to participate in events that have to do with outdoor adventure and the environment are the main reasons that I chose this project. Throughout the year, I hope to better learn how to connect with others — specifically my saplings — and become a resource for them. I also hope to continue to participate in more outdoor adventures while hopefully gaining some new skills. The photo I have attached to this post is one of myself and my roommates from last year. I chose to include this photo because these women were so impactful in my life during my first year of college. They all made my first year a great experience, and I cherish the friendship that I have with each of them. I hope that this experience as a mentor helps me to be able to have such a positive impact in the first year college experience of my saplings.
