Photos by Ralph Freso
Grace Harney sat near the center of an expanded classroom on the second floor of Grand Canyon University's Colangelo College of Business.
After gaining experience and confidence with the help of the Women in Business club's upperclassmen, Harney was ready to return the favor by participating in the club's mentor program.
“I do feel more comfortable,” Harney said before a recent mentor training meeting. “I don't think that last year I would have applied to be a mentor. I feel this year, now I have two internships under my belt, and I feel more well-spoken, I’m able to go through those processes.
“I feel like as a business major, as a woman, it's kind of daunting because the business world is kind of filled with powerful men. I feel like it should be filled with powerful women, too, and I feel like this club empowers them.”
The club, with 738 members, is one of the largest on campus. In addition to its recent success stories, one of its biggest accomplishments is its ability to sustain a large membership. And a large reason for that is the willingness of veteran members to lend support and experience to freshmen and sophomores in need of steering and/or words of encouragement.
Maggy Boyce appreciated how much older students looked out of her when she was a freshman. So as Boyce ascended as a member, she kept an eye on the director of mentorship role to help freshmen get connected.
And during the first mentor training session meeting, Boyce invited Harley Hawk Harris, who became the club's first director of mentorship, to speak to about 80 students interested in serving as mentors.
“As soon as WIB started the first (mentor program), Harley was someone who was always kind to me,” said Boyce, who is the organization's director of mentorship. “I looked up to her a lot, and I saw the way she got involved. She encouraged me to make me feel like I can do it. If someone who held a leadership role believes in me, then I believe in me, too.”
Before Boyce dug into details about how mentors would prepare for their duties, Hawk Harris spoke passionately about helping future mentors, lending advice from being punctual to “creating a safe place” for mentees.
“Encourage them and make them feel excited about the opportunities at GCU,” Hawk Harris told the future mentors, adding that it was important to cultivate sustainable relationships and not be afraid to show your vulnerability.
Boyce’s decision to incorporate Hawk Harris into the training session carries significant weight. After earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees at GCU, Hawk Harris serves as development officer for the university.
It is more than words of encouragement that mentors are asked to recite to mentees. There are monthly meetups in which mentors will implement professional skills and knowledge. Each mentor will have a workbook to serve as a guide to aid undergraduates with their aspirations and skills.
Boyce emphasized the “power of being seen,” that mentors make sure that mentees know and believe in them, holding them accountable while supporting them toward achieving their goals and imploring them to maximize their gifts.
Boyce recalls how Hawk Harris’ advice steered her in the right direction, especially when encouraged to perform her own research and find interests that suited her.
Boyce landed an internship in the spring with Best Western Hotels. “And that was great.”
Harney, a senior business management major from Las Vegas, plans to impart the wisdom she gained, such as applying for jobs and going through an interview process. She said he gained confidence through building her Linkedin page and resume.
“I think that that'll be a great opportunity to share with underclassmen,” said Harney, who performed a social media internship with Tri-County Bank in California and a social media marketing internship with a wedding planning company.
Jaydn St. John, a senior accounting major from Henderson, Nevada, knows firsthand what undergraduates might need. She is a mentee for an accounting software company and is gaining routes to success in that specific field.
“And then I'm also an accounting tutor, so I'm able to help a lot of people in general on campus with those tough, difficult accounting courses, and just through various networking and connections that I have, I hope to be able to provide that for my mentees,” St. John said.
GCU News Senior Writer Mark Gonzales can be reached at [email protected]
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