Sunshine Secondary College students are heading into term four on a high after completing a 20-week program with community mentors.
The school has had mentors from the Raise Foundation at its Sunshine and Ardeer campuses this year, providing 15 students at each campus with valuable hands-on
guidance.
Raise Foundation program counsellor, Nicola Hogan said the response from the students had been overwhelmingly positive.
“Some of them started off thinking it was just a way of getting out of class, but by the end they were saying it had been so helpful and they really enjoyed it,” she said.
“One student said it was great talking to someone they could trust, and another said it made them believe that adults are people they can talk to.
“For kids who didn’t like speaking, by the end they were standing up in front of a group and saying great things about their mentors.”
Raise plans to return to the college next year and also expand into other schools in Brimbank. Ms Hogan said they were on the hunt for more volunteer mentors to join the program.
“The mentors benefit out of this program as well – they’re always talking about how it’s changed their lives,” she said.
“Listening is the biggest part of the job – helping the kids build resiliency and showing them new ways of thinking without telling them what to do. It’s a really great program.”
Anyone interested in joining the Raise mentoring program should visit raise.org.au or call 0406 412 376.
