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For first-year students, adjusting to college life, managing coursework and building connections isn’t always easy – but connecting with even one fellow student who has walked in their shoes to share advice, support and just be a friend can be foundational to academic success.
This is the crux of the STEM Peer Mentorship (SPM) program at Emmanuel College. Pairing first-year students from the School of Science & Health with juniors and seniors that have similar interests, academic and career goals, the program fosters a culture among students that strives for community, belonging and success across STEM departments. With the efforts of faculty and dedicated student mentors, the program has grown since its inception in 2021, now with more than 50 peer and mentor pairs.
Alumnae Isabella Schichter ’22 and Sydney Teixeira ’22 wanted to take their personal experience at Emmanuel and put it into practice – building a program where future students could benefit from peer-to-peer mentorship, just as they did as undergraduates. Working alongside Assistant Professor of Biology Dr. Janel Cabrera and Associate Professor of Biology Dr. Anupama Seshan, the program was initiated using Emmanuel’s existing Howard Hughes Medical Institute IE3 (HHMI) funds, first awarded to the College in 2021.
As first-year students, Schichter and Teixeira connected with upperclassmen organically through the help of Science & Health faculty. Those upperclassmen became “unofficial mentors” for both alums and gave them advice on how to pursue their goals on the pre-med track, how to adjust to college life, and eventually, just became good friends, too.
“It speaks to the setting [here] at a smaller institution, having professors that work so closely with students and know them personally, that they could connect us to the right person,” Schichter said.
Dr. Cabrera and Dr. Seshan credited both alums with making the program come to life.
“Assistant Professor of Biology, Dr. Janel Cabrera“They came to us and they wanted to start this…our students are very passionate about helping their peers succeed. It’s a ‘pay it forward’ kind of process that has helped drive this program."
Teixeira said having that “go-to person” was foundational in both her and Schichter’s Emmanuel experiences. In their junior and senior years, they fully committed to building the foundations of the SPM program. Now years later, the program is going strong and has shown positive results.
Students who participate become more comfortable with faculty members, Dr. Seshan said, as well as more comfortable in their department, because it feels like more of a community rather than just the academic department to which they belong.
Students in the SPM program are showing more proven success in their first-year courses, too. According to data from Emmanuel’s Office of Institutional Research, participants in the SPM program show stronger academic performance in the Introductory Biology course than students who don’t participate.
This year, Schichter and Teixeira’s first iteration of SPM came full-circle when Emely Cruz ’25 and Amy Lopez ’25 became senior coordinators. As first-years, Cruz and Lopez participated in that pilot year – and like the alums before them, Cruz and Lopez gained so much from the support of their mentors that they wanted to keep the cycle going.
“What makes this so special is that we are the bridge between the first-year students and the upperclassmen who want to support them as they were supported and see them succeed,” Cruz said.
The mentors provide reassurance that “there’s a place for you,” when college life or coursework is challenging, she said. Her mentor made her aware of and encouraged her to use the wide array of resources available to her on campus, like the Academic Resource Center (ARC). Seeing her mentor’s close relationships with the Science & Health faculty was reassuring too, she added, because she saw through those connections how supportive Emmanuel’s faculty are.
As a first-generation college student, Lopez said she wanted to connect with a fellow student and become more aware of all the resources available to her on campus, so she went outside of her comfort zone and joined the SPM program.
“I’m glad I did because now I’m here,” she said. Lopez’s mentor helped her pick out her classes and gave recommendations on how to approach the pre-med track. As a commuter, Lopez also said being part of the SPM community was a great way to connect with and meet even more Emmanuel students.
Some additions have been made to the original SPM model too. The coordinators organize events, like a Saint Patrick’s Day mixer, which took place on March 13th, to provide even more opportunities for participants in the program to connect with fellow students that have similar identities and interests.
They’ve also streamlined the peer and mentor pairing process – which started with Schichter and Teixeira matching students’ interests with a massive layout of sticky notes. Now, SPM uses a “speed dating” format, which allows peers and mentors to introduce themselves and choose their preferred pairing based on their shared interests.
