Student success and retention staff can suggest a Blackburn mentor for a student who has a plan from your office but needs weekly follow-through to carry it out. The student, or family with the student’s agreement, completes a five-minute assessment or calls (888) 305 5422, has a free intro call and is matched with one dedicated mentor. With the student’s written permission, the mentor shares progress with you.
Which students benefit most
Your office sees the students most at risk of leaving. Many already know what they need to do. What they lack is someone checking in every few days to help them do it. Students who often benefit:
- Students on academic probation working through a success plan or contract
- Students returning after academic suspension or a successful dismissal appeal, with conditions to meet
- Students on a financial aid SAP plan who must hit term-by-term benchmarks
- Students coming back from a leave, medical or otherwise (see returning to college after a leave)
- Adult reentry students who stopped out and are trying again (see some college, no degree)
- First-generation students and transfer students in their first term
How a mentor supports probation, return and reentry plans
You set the plan with the student. The mentor helps them work it week by week. A typical rhythm:
- Start with your plan. With permission, the student shares the conditions or goals from your office, such as attending every class, meeting an advisor monthly or completing a set number of credits.
- Weekly planning. The student and mentor map every class, deadline and required appointment for the week.
- Between-session contact. Short texts or calls: did you go to the tutoring appointment, did the email to the professor go out?
- Early warning. When something slips, it shows up in days, not at midterm. The mentor helps the student reach out to you or the professor quickly.
- Term review. At the end of the term, the student and mentor look at what worked and what to change, and share it with you if the student agrees.
Students working toward an appeal write their own statements and make their own case. A mentor helps them plan the timeline and gather what your process requires. Our guide to telling parents about academic probation covers a conversation many students dread.
What a mentor does not do
- No academic advising. Degree planning, registration and standing stay with your office and advising. See academic advisor vs mentor.
- No tutoring. Content help stays with faculty and the tutoring and writing centers; the mentor helps the student actually go.
- No decisions on standing, appeals or aid. Those belong to the college.
- No access to records. We see only what the student chooses to share.
- No clinical care. If a student is struggling with mood, anxiety or substance use, campus counseling or another licensed professional is the right step. In a crisis, call or text 988.
Permissions and student privacy
Most college students are adults, so the student decides in writing who receives updates, including your office and their family. Without that permission, nothing is shared. Follow your institution’s policies on student information when you communicate with any outside provider. With permission, updates are practical: whether weekly steps happened, which ones keep slipping and anything the student wants you to know.
How to refer a student
- Suggest it. Name the gap you see and share our number, (888) 305 5422, or the five-minute assessment.
- The student reaches out. Families can help with the student’s agreement. Our team reviews every assessment personally.
- Free intro call. We talk through goals and fit.
- Matching. The student is matched with one dedicated mentor, by video anywhere in the United States or in person in Los Angeles.
- Coordination with permission. Once the student agrees in writing, the mentor can share progress with you.
Mentoring is arranged with the student or family. Details are on our refer a student page.
Where a mentor helps
The best fit is a student whose plan is sound and whose weeks keep getting away from them. See mentoring for college students, our pages for college advisors and for colleges and universities, the college success guides for students, and all of our pages for education professionals.
Related
Common questions
Does the mentor replace our success coaches or advisors?
No. Your staff set the plan and make the decisions; the mentor helps the student follow through between your meetings.
Will the mentor report to our office?
Only with the student’s written permission. Then the mentor can share whether weekly steps happened and what keeps slipping.
Can a mentor help a student prepare an appeal?
A mentor can help the student plan the timeline and organize what your process asks for. The student writes and submits the appeal, and the college decides.
Do you work with students outside Los Angeles?
Yes. Mentoring is by video anywhere in the United States, scheduled in the student’s local time, and in person in Los Angeles.
Get started
Have a student with a good plan who needs weekly follow-through? Call (888) 305 5422, email contact@blackburnmentoring.com or start with a short assessment. A member of our team reviews every assessment personally and sets up a free intro call.