THE LIVED EXPERIENCES OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS SERVING AS PEER MENTORS

Youth mentoring is an intervention that has demonstrated a tremendous amount of potential in mitigating a variety of struggles experienced by youth (DuBois & Rhodes, 2006; Grossman & Tierney, 1998; Herrera et al., 2008; “Impact Evaluation”, 2009; Karcher, 2009; Karcher, 2010; Kraus & Cleveland, 2016; Lerner et al., 2006; McQuillin et al., 2020). The exploration of the possible benefits to adolescents serving as mentors, especially nontraditional student mentors, has received little attention (Besnoy & McDaniel, 2016; Deane et al., 2018; James et al., 2014; Karcher, 2009; Karcher et al., 2010; Larson et al., 2020; Opara et al., 2023; Quimby et al., 2023; Willis et al., 2012). As school leaders seek innovative practices to address and mitigate complex and interconnected challenges faced by today’s youth, the development of school-based mentoring programs that utilize adolescents as mentors to younger students offers a promising option (James et al., 2014, Karcher, 2009; Larson et al., 2020; Opara et al., 2023; Quimby et al., 2023). The prospect of a program that can benefit both the adolescent mentors and the younger mentees greatly enhances its value. This phenomenological case study explores the lived experiences of high school students serving as cross-age peer mentors who do not necessarily exhibit traditional leadership qualities nor the 5Cs (Competence, Confidence, Connection, Character, and Caring)(Lerner et al., 2014) of Positive Youth Development within a mentoring program designed to benefit mentors as well as mentees. This study contributes to the literature by revealing findings that nontraditional adolescent mentors can develop and/or improve leadership skills and increase school engagement by serving as a mentor to younger peers.