Mentoring Program Connects with students and alumni

The Oregon Alpha chapter participated in the pilot year of the mentoring program, so the 2025-26 school year was our third year. In the first two years, we saw the potential but, frankly, did not put in the time and energy needed to get the program off the ground. That changed in the third year, and we saw the promise of this initiative.

Our higher level of support led to increased participation and engagement by alumni and students. More importantly, those who committed to the program had a very positive and impactful experience. Freshmen got some clarity about their direction and seniors got professional contacts and advice that helped them get jobs.

Here is a summary of our year:

Support

We took a much more active role in managing the program at the chapter level in the 2025-26 school year.

• Alumni Professions: We added “Profession” to our alumni update form two years ago to start building a list of potential mentors. We have professions listed for more than 100 alumni now which helped in the recruiting process.

• Pairing: We put substantial effort into the pairing process this year, personally recruiting alumni for about a third of the pairings to get the best match.

• Materials: We develop a Mentoring Guide to educate mentors on the program goals and a Mentoring Workbook outlining topics for six meetings in case the pairings needed a starting point.

• Outreach: We reached out three times during the year. Once to see if the mentors and mentees had connected, once midway through the year to check in on progress, and once at the end of the year to get feedback.

Participation

Oregon Alpha exceeded the participation goal it set at the beginning of the year.

• Goal: 25% student participation, or 11 students

• Result: We paired 17 students with alumni mentors during the year. Five pairings were second-year participants in the program and 12 pairings were new. Students from all class levels participated.

Engagement

Our chapter made progress on student engagement this year, but about a third of the students did not engage after signing up for the program.

• Goal: Six meetings for each pairing

• Result: More pairings met more frequently than in the previous year, but some pairings never got moving. Six pairings met regularly, five met several times, and six never met.

Looking Forward

We will build on our momentum in the 2026-27 school year and evolve the program in a few ways.

• Program Launch: We need to launch earlier to allow time for pairings to meet six times. Last year most pairings were made in December and January.

• Alumni Recruitment: We need to expand the professional information we have for alumni so we can identify the best matches for students.

• Student Recruitment: We need to take a more active role in promoting the program in the chapter and recruiting students.

• Linked In Connections: We have a Linked In group that sits idle but it could be a great tool for fostering lifetime connections. We’ll look at how to leverage that this year.

How you can help

Our goal is to match student mentees with the best possible mentors which means having lots of options to choose from. If you are paired with a student, the time commitment is small but the impact is huge. All we ask is that each pairing meet six times during the school year, mostly by video call. Here are two things you can do in the next five minutes to help:

• Update Your Information: Use the alumni information form on this website to give us your current contact information and your profession. We used this information last year to identify several great mentors.

• Register for MAP: Complete the MAP Application on the national website and indicate you want an Oregon Alpha student. It helps to have many more mentors registered than mentees so we can find the best possible match. Needs include attorneys, sports business, finance, marketing, and therapy/counseling.