Ementoring: A Partnership that Works!

For the past five years students at Woodland Elementary have participated in a fabulous school/business partnership program with General Mills called Ementoring.  This program has made a huge difference in increasing students' writing skills, exposing them to the business world, maintaining high scores on the writing portion of the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCAs), and creating a mentorship relationship for each student.

Each year, from October through May, our sixth grade students have written bi-weekly emails to their General Mills ementors, each student being paired with a mentor.  The first week the students write a teacher directed assignment on the top of their email, usually one paragraph in a writing style tested on the MCAs.  (The ementor is sent a separate email from our Technology Integration Teacher outlining the expectations for this writing assignment.)  Then, at the bottom of the email, the student writes a personal note to their ementor.  Once complete, the emails are sent.

Ementors read and respond to each student's email within 48 hours.  They read their mentee's assigned paragraph and give suggestions for improvement.  Then, at the bottom of the email, they respond to the personal note from their mentee.  This email is then sent back to the mentee at Woodland.  The student is responsible to revise their writing and, the next week, send a final copy to the ementor, plus add a personal note/response (these are not evaluated).

The ementors and their mentees meet at least three times per year; twice at Woodland and once at General Mills.  At Woodland, in the fall, the group participates in fun and social activities as a means of introduction and in the spring an ice cream social celebrates the end of the year.  When the students visit General Mills, they are introduced to marketing strategies, participate in product evaluations, and spend time touring the facility and their ementor's work space.

Our school's business partnership with General Mills has truly made a difference in student writing performance and social development.  The program requires a bi-weekly focus on writing in the classroom and the students have a caring audience for whom to write (different from parents and teachers).  Plus, each adult at General Mills provides friendship, builds a personal relationship, and serves as a powerful role model.

Woodland Elementary School is VERY grateful and fortunate to have this wonderful business partnership with General Mills.  Our students' writing skills have improved, test scores on the MCAs remain high (over 80% proficient), and each student has a caring adult role model and friend who mentors them via email and face-to-face visits throughout the school year.  Due to dedicated and caring teachers and General Mills staff members, the ementoring program truly has made a powerful difference in the lives of our students.

Comments

[Greg Farr]

Excellent post! What a great idea!
Where can I look for more info? I'd like to see (steal) some of this program. I would love to see the nuts and bolts. Please post a website or email me.
Thanks!!
[email protected]

[Jan Borelli]

Linda,

Please email me! This is simply excellent.

Jan