Senior Sophie Grunzweig and Kevin Grunzweig and guidance counselor Russell, leaders of the Freshmen Mentoring Program (FMP) in Solon High School look forward to seeing the results of the changes they made to the program. They hope to ease the anxiety and uncertainty of the freshmen.

In 2020, there was no room for improvement of the program. Russell met with the mentors to improve the program for the benefit of the freshman.

“My goal for FMP is to create leaders and improve leadership skills of the mentors and to create a bond between the freshman and mentors,” Russel said. “My plan to make sure this is done is to create the same group of mentors paired with the same freshman. Personal safety, mental health, school work, stress management and inclusion of diversity are all different things I want to improve with this program.”

Trying to make this year different, but better than last year, Russell is using her plan to make sure the freshmen feel welcomed and safe.

“Molding to the students needs, the mentors will create a bond to do the best they can to make sure the students feel secure,” Russell said “It will be different because every year the content and sessions change based on the information we get off of the previous freshman. We react and respond to the items that the kids identify as to what they enjoyed. It will obviously be different because we are in person this year compared to last year, that was terrible.”

Similarly, the Grunzweigs (the student leaders of FMP) are focusing on making this year better. Sophie Grunzweig understands that coming from a smaller school into a bigger school can be extremely stressful and worrisome. Her plan is to make sure the freshmen feel at ease.

“My goals for this year’s FMP is to make sure the freshman get used to the high school environment since they didn’t get to experience a normal year last year,” Sophie Grunzweig said “It can be very stressful for them to go from middle school to such a big school, so I want to ease them in and help them feel more comfortable.”

On the other hand, Kevin Grunzweig wants to make sure the freshman take the advice and really utilize it.

“My goal for FMP is to make sure the freshman take our advice to heart, rather than just brushing it off,” he said.

Sophie Grunzweig wants to pair mentors with freshmen to ensure a bond that will make the mentoring feel more natural and to ensure a bond that will make the mentoring feel more natural. The plan to ensure the bond is to pair a freshman with a mentor and make sure they get to know each other, this will make the freshmen feel more comfortable coming to the mentor with different concerns and questions.

“Once again, the small groups make sure the freshman have a consistent mentor and they can create a bond so the freshman has someone to go to if they have questions or need advice,” Sophie Grunzweig

Kevin agrees with Sophie on how since we are in person this year, the freshman will get full freshman year experience.

“I definitely think this year will be different because we will be in person rather than online and the freshmen can really engage,” Kevin Grinzweig said.