Issue link: https://trevordayschool.uberflip.com/i/915972
Trevor has a long-standing commitment to community service. It is an integral part of its mission and curriculum to ensure that students have the opportunity to develop a sense of responsibility for their community and become empowered citizens and agents for positive change. Starting in Lower School, Trevor students participate in service programs throughout the school year, including work with UNICEF, e New York Common Pantry, Cassidy's Place, and Central Park Conservancy. Trevor continues to foster this passion for service learning through the Middle and Upper School, as students participate in service experiences around the neighborhood, greater New York City, and beyond. In 2016, Trevor student Scott C. '18 began searching for mentorship programs in New York City with which to get involved. He quickly found the well-known Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC program, whose mission matched what Scott was seeking as a volunteer. Unfortunately, the program required its volunteers to be at least 18 years old. Undeterred, Scott decided he would create his own program, loosely based on the Big Brothers Big Sisters model, which would connect Trevor Upper School students with elementary school students. With the guidance of Dacel Casey, Grades 6–12 Library Media Specialist and Community Service Coordinator, and alongside Nishta Dhanesar '17, another Trevor student searching for a mentorship opportunity, a proposal was drafted and sent to Trevor's neighbor ten blocks north—East Harlem Tutorial Program (EHTP). Trevor's student-driven Mentor Me program was born. 1 8 T R E V O R D AY S C H O O L n FA L L 2 0 1 7 – 2 0 1 8 Mentor Me's objective is to connect Trevor Upper School mentors with elementary and middle school students in need of mentorship and academic support. By doing so, volunteers hope to cultivate positive friendships, assist with homework and tutoring, and minimize childcare stress for parents. Trevor first embarked on the Mentor Me program with students from EHTP—tutoring them after school and coordinating field trips and programming, including a Halloween party and a trip to the American Museum of Natural History with students and their parents. e program immediately benefitted not only the mentees, but the Upper School Trevor students as well—who serve as tutors and role models for the young scholars to look up to and rely upon. Encouraged by the successful implementation of the program, Daniel Feigin, Assistant Head of School and Director of Upper School, saw the potential for also connecting Mentor Me with the after-school participants of the Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Center, right around the corner on First Avenue. He recalls, "As soon as we moved into the new building, one of our primary initiatives was to get into the immediate neighborhood to contribute. Given our successful track record with Mentor Me, a burgeoning relationship with the Stanley Isaacs Center, our When Trevor opened its new Middle and Upper School building on Manhattan's Upper East Side in the spring of 2015, the school knew there would be myriad opportunities to connect with its new neighborhood. As it happened, one of those opportunities was, quite literally, just around the corner. I think my favorite part is the duality of the name "Mentor Me" and how it goes both ways. —Scott C. '18