The Yleana Leadership Foundation’s College Success Mentoring Program, set to launch in summer 2022, will support our alums in:

• Navigating the transition to higher education;

• Addressing academic, professional, and social issues throughout their college years;

• And, ultimately, persisting to graduation. 

Yleana already supports students through the college application process (College Access Mentoring) and the transition from college to the professional world (College to Career Transitional Mentoring), so the College Success Mentoring Program will complete our portfolio of offerings for alums, serving as a key connective piece to support our students throughout their years in college. Alums will be matched with mentors in the summer before their freshman year in college to help ease the transition to college life, or can start at any point during their college process when they recognize that they need a little (or a lot of!) help.

Mentors will commit to supporting alums throughout their college experience, including:

• managing shifting financial aid and scholarships (which may change year to year)

• course selection

• declaring and picking a major

• making sure they are on track to graduate and their classes count towards their major/graduation/core requirements

• navigating being a person of color at a PWI (predominantly white institution) by identifying safe spaces/community/affinity groups/houses

• coming back from time off

• dealing with administration

• taking leave (medical, academic or other)

• taking advantage of mental health and academic support

• juggling making money with studying

Yleana’s college success/persistence curriculum, developed as part of the mentoring program, will provide resources for mentors and mentees to utilize throughout the course of their mentorship relationship.