High school is a battle. Navigating classes and social relationships have caused many a student to feel overwhelmed by the pressures. But knowing that every second of high school is spent preparing for your future is even more difficult when you come from a lower income bracket.
This is the situation of the students at the Milton Hershey School in Hershey, PA. The Milton Hershey School was established in 1909 by chocolatier-turned-philanthropist Milton Hershey and his wife Catherine.
The school offers cost-free, top-notch private education to all students, kindergarten through 12th grade.
Never heard of the school? If you’ve spent money at Hershey Chocolate World, you’ve contributed to the students’ education. The school is funded in part by Chocolate World profits, as well as other Hershey Company entities.
Besides being a cost-free private school, Milton Hershey is different in another big way: the students live on campus in “student homes” with other kids in their grade and one or two “house parents,” employees of the school who act as guardians for the students during the school year. However, house parents don’t fill the role of the students’ real parents; how could they? This means that the students enrolled in the school are largely on their own as far as extracurricular guidance.
And thus, the Moving Forward Together (MFT) program was born.
MFT is a four-year mentorship program that pairs Elizabethtown College first-year students and a Milton Hershey freshman, with the Etown student in a mentor role.
The mentee and mentor spend time together through events such as bowling, cooking classes, ropes courses and visits to both Milton Hershey School and Etown. The two students remain paired together throughout their entire four years in either high school or college.
“Many of our mentor-mentee pairs keep in touch post-graduation, which is really special and is a testament to how purposeful this program can be,” MFT student liaison Celia Martone said of the program.
My mentee and I are both sophomores this year. We’ve been in communication all year, and have bonded over our favorite sports, crazy schedules, and a shared inability to win card games.
“I wanted to be a part of something and have that connection with someone because they’re older but still in school so they can help in ways that others can’t,” said the mentee about why she wanted to join MFT.
That connection is evident, not only with my mentee and me, but with other pairs as well as they cheer each other on, take pictures with each other and connect not just as students as a part of a program, but as people that geniunely care for one another.
MFT mentors are encouraged to contact their mentees at least once a week, but most communicate more frequently than that.
“The long-term values [of the program] are cultivating deep and meaningful relationships with high school students who frequently need a consistent presence in their life,” Martone said.
I’ve seen the program’s immeasurable value to the Milton Hershey students, but I’ve also experienced the impact it has on the mentors of these students.
With MFT, I have the opportunity to be involved in something bigger than myself. I get a friend out of the experience, but the mentees get a cheerleader, a confidant and someone who is just there for them, which they often lack.
The knowledge that you’re filling that role could seem daunting but instead it’s amazing. I know that I’ll always have a friend in my mentee, and I hope that she feels the exact same way about me.
