03 November 2009
Students launch unique volunteer mentoring scheme
Students from the University of Sheffield are giving something back to the local community this week (03 November 2009) as they launch a unique volunteer mentoring scheme working with young people in Sheffield.
The `Rising Stars´ initiative, which is being run in partnership with Silverdale Secondary School in Sheffield and with the support of the Union of Students and SheffieldVolunteering, works with youngsters from the Broomhall area of the city, who may face potential barriers to learning. The scheme aims to broaden their horizons and introduce them to the prospect of Higher Education.
The project will involve approximately 20 volunteer students meeting individually with pupils from Years 11-13 at either the School of the Union of Students at the University. During the meetings, the mentors will offer support to the pupils on a range of topics from UCAS forms and funding issues, to study skills and what to expect from life at university. The scheme will involve the pupils spending time on the University campus with their student mentor to experience university life first hand.
Abdi-Aziz Suleiman, a first year Philosophy student, and Abdul-Rahman Jama, a first year student in Spanish and French, are two of the mentors at the centre of the project. Both students have grown up in Broomhall, attended Silverdale and successfully made the transition to University life. They are both now looking to give something back to their local community.
Abdul-Rahman said: "As soon as I heard about it, I was really keen to get involved in this project. It will definitely have good outcomes for the community. There are a lot of gifted young people in Broomhall, but they all too often lack direction to transform their gifts into a good education. This project will hopefully give them a push in the right direction."
Paul Tobin, President of the Union of Students, said: "This is a fantastic scheme that the Union really is proud to be associated with. Students are proud of coming to Sheffield and living in this city and we want the city to be proud of the influence its students have in the local community."
Paul Moore-Bridger, a Philosophy teacher at Silverdale and a key coordinator in the scheme, said: "I am really excited about this mentoring project because it is meeting a need that we have identified at school, and then the mentors are making it happen. They are doing something that will really make a difference to a number of our students' life chances."
Joshua Forstenzer, a student in the University´s Department of Philosophy, who established the scheme, said: "By setting up Rising Stars, we hope to inspire young people´s interest in Higher Education. University can often be a daunting prospect, but by working with pupils to help them prepare for the transition to university, we hope to provide them with the knowledge and confidence needed to make an informed decision about their future. We successfully ran different elements of this project last year as part of the volunteering program, Philosophy in the City. We hope that with all the elements put together, Rising Stars will benefit the pupils at Silverdale School this year even more." For further information please contact: Lauren Anderson, Media Relations Officer, on 0114 2221046 or email l.h.anderson@sheffield.ac.uk
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