A mentoring plan for Normandy, Pine Lawn

Kreana Pye

Junior Kreana Pye of Normandy High School is a part in a unique mentoring program for sixth graders at nearby Pine Lawn Elementary School. That's the same neighborhood school Kreana attended when she was younger.

Kreana is among 35 Normandy students taking part in the LEAP mentoring program. A non-profit, the International Leadership Network, sponsors the once-a-month mentoring.

Of the 35 Normandy students, 20 are juniors and 15 are sophomores. The sophomores are in training to become the lead mentors next year.

The idea is for the older kids to be a "real-life" positive resource for younger kids.

All the Normandy teenagers are members of the Air Force ROTC program. Many joined the ROTC chapter because of its emphasis on self-discipline and character building.

That's the same message the Normandy teens are bringing to the Pine Lawn kids.

Sixteen-year-old Kreana said, "We're going to exchange telephone numbers with the younger kids. That way, besides the meetings, we can talk with them on a regular basis."

The formal meetings of the Normandy mentors and the Pine Lawn kids are set for once a month throughout the 2005-06 school year. Each school serves as host every other month.

The first session in October was at Normandy and Pine Lawn was host in November.

At each meeting, the older and younger kids examine the meanings of "Six Pillars of Character," according to Capt. Philip White. He's the ROTC instructor at Normandy.

Although the LEAP mentoring started this fall, the planning began earlier.

Tamisha Tillman

Junior Tamisha Tillman said she started planning for it when she came to Normandy as a freshman. The 17-year-old said, "They asked me to write a letter telling why I should be a leader of the program."

She's now the CEO of the Normandy leadership team that administers LEAP.

"I'm trying to be the best leader I can be to help the Pine Lawn kids be the leaders of the future," she said.

Tamisha said the Pine Lawn kids "are an intelligent group of children and are very respectful. They're willing to learn."

Avia Jordan

Sixteen-year-old Avia Jordan is the president of the mentoring leadership group. Each leader of the Normandy mentoring group is meeting with two Pine Lawn students. Some of the others have just one Pine Lawn student.

Avia said she has a boy and a girl and both kids "are very open." She said, "I think most of the (Pine Lawn) kids want to have a positive interaction with us."

Benita Jones

Sixteen-year-old Benita Jones is the treasurer of the leadership group. She said, "I love younger kids and, with the mentoring, I'll have more respect for them."

Respect is one of Captain White's "Six Pillars of Character" words. Others include trustworthiness, responsibility, fairness, caring, citizenship, honesty and courage.

Before each meeting, the Normandy students make signs for the monthly theme. They plan activities such as role-playing, games and everyday examples to illustrate the theme.

For the first meeting, the Normandy and Pine Lawn kids interviewed each other about their lives and interests. This helped the kids develop a personal connection.

Rikkisha Polk

Sixteen-year-old Rikkisha Polk said she and her Pine Lawn kids "all liked sports and other subjects." She said, "They learned that I do just about everything around school. I play basketball, volleyball and soccer. I'm in Upward Bound and in the biology club."

Rikkisha, the leadership team vice president, said, "They said they wanted to be active."

All of the leadership team officers said they were attracted to ROTC because of the structure of the program.

Captain White said, "ROTC's focus is on developing better citizens for the country." Captain White is a retired Air Force member. But, he stressed, "ROTC isn't a military recruiting tool."

However, Benita Jones said she'll probably join the Army or Air Force after graduation..

But, Tamisha Tillman wants to be a lawyer; Avia Jordan, a psychiatrist; Kreana, a computer engineer or programmer, and Rikkisha Polk, a physical therapist.

(ILN now sponsors three LEAP mentoring partnerships between St. Louis high and elementary schools. If your school would like to know more about this mentoring program, visit www.ilnleadnet.com.)