NSC mentorship program reaches out to middle schoolers

By Dave Clark

Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2008 | midnight

A year ago, eighth-grader Micah Weakly gave little thought to college or grades. Now the Jack and Terry Mannion Middle School student openly ponders his future, and his report card is filled with A's and B's.

The difference: Crossroads — a mentoring program developed by Nevada State College and the Clark County School District to help high-risk seventh and eighth graders understand the importance of education.

On Thursday, 160 students from 12 Southeast Region middle schools met with college student mentors and toured the Water Street campus of Nevada State College.

"We're trying to motivate them to see the importance of school," said Rene Cantu, vice president of multicultural affairs at Nevada State College. "We're covering non-academic skills important for their success like confidence-building and self-esteem."

The program began last year with a push by the college's Diversification Advisory Committee, which concluded the school should be reaching out to better prepare middle and elementary school students for college.

Cantu expects the program to continue for at least three more years with a gift from Randy Garcia of the Investment Counsel of Nevada.

This year's version is bolstered by 20 college student mentors and eight facilitators communicating with students about their goals. Last year, there were only three mentors.

"It's made a tremendous difference," Cantu said.

Future sessions will also cover academic subjects such as science and math for the first time, Cantu said.

"We just continue to improve and refine it," he said.

One of the new mentors is Derick Manabat, a 24-year-old Henderson resident studying nursing at Nevada State. He related to the financial and academic circumstances of the younger students.

"I came from a low-income family," he said. "My parents worked a lot. I didn't want to burden them with educational costs. I was a very average student."

At the session held at the Henderson Convention Center, Manabat steered students toward thinking about their future by encouraging them to share their goals.

"We want to give them a little bit more advice — spark their interest in something," Manabat said. "I think it's a good motivator."

Cantu said the heightened motivation was evident in the results of last year's program, which saw improvements in grades and attendance.

Data collected last year from student surveys also indicated 45 percent of students grew more self-confident, 55 percent were more motivated and 57 percent had an increased perception of the importance of education.

With Weakly and fellow Mannion eighth grader Ricky Carroll, the shift was evident.

"It makes you change your whole life perspective at school, the people you talk to, the people you hang out with," Weakly said.

Carroll said he was failing before he got involved with the program.

"I didn't care about college and didn't think about jobs or how much money you can make," he said.

Dave Clark can be reached at 990-2677 or [email protected].