GLIDE Peer Mentorship Program
Guiding Learners to Intentionally Develop Efficacy (GLIDE) is a peer mentorship program designed for the success of Latinx and Black students to help minimize identified equity gaps, but all students are welcome to participate. GLIDE was launched during the 2022- 2023 academic year and is currently a two-year pilot program. Annually, we welcome 40 first-year Harper students as mentees and 10 returning Harper students as peer mentors during the Fall semester. GLIDE assists students with establishing peer connections, goal setting, supports their development of proactive study habits and overall acclimation to the campus. Additionally, GLIDE participants have opportunities to develop relationships with faculty, staff and administrators, engage in financial literacy education and are exposed to various academic and non-academic support services available at Harper. Furthermore, GLIDE students experience at least one Downtown Chicago excursion each semester that the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion fully sponsors. Mentors and mentees also receive stipends during the Fall and Spring semesters to help mitigate some of the financial needs that often arise.
Preliminary data from the 2022-2023 academic year was overwhelmingly positive for our GLIDE students, and the analysis revealed that most of them outperformed their peers in areas such as semester-to-semester persistence. Here is a snapshot of the data.
79% of Black and Latinx credential-seeking students that did not participate in the GLIDE mentorship program persisted compared to 90% of Black and Latinx student mentees that did participate in the program.
80% of Black and Latinx student mentees were above a 2.0 GPA. Compared to 74% of Black and Latinx credential-seeking students that did not participate in the program.
If you would like more information about the GLIDE Peer Mentorship Program please email Esmeralda Guerrero Lopez at eguerrer@harpercollege.edu or Monica Shirley at mshirley@harpercollege.edu.
Jenny Carrasco is majoring in Biology (Pre-Med). She loves to play the piano, connecting with friends and watching anime. Jenny's favorite food is chicken nuggets and she loves the color green.
Fatima Gonzalez-Aguirre is majoring in Biology. She was a member of Latinos Unidos and enjoys watching anime in her spare time. Her favorite movie is Mulan, she enjoys Chinese cuisine and loves the color blue. Additionally, Fatima participated in the One Million Degrees program.
Andres Lopez is majoring in Linguistics. He is a member of the International Students Club and Latinos Unidos. He enjoys watching anime in his spare time. Andres favorite manga is Naruto, and he loves learning new languages.
Julissa Malagon is majoring in Public Health. She was the Secretary for Latinos Unidos student organization and loves crafting in her spare time. She loves pasta and her favorite color is pink. Julissa also participated in the One Million Degrees program.
Ashley Nava is preparing for the Nursing program. She loves to play soccer and spend time with her friends. Her favorite food is sushi and she loves the color pink. Ashley also participates in the One Million Degrees program.
Adaolisa Okwuosa is majoring in Nursing. She loves baked macaroni and her favorite color is red. Adaolisa loves to watch Netflix during her spare time and her favorite movie is How to Train a Dragon.
Desiree Peerman is majoring in Computer Science and she loves to travel. Desiree's favorite colors are green and rose gold.
Sarahy Ramirez has been accepted into the Nursing program at Harper College! She is a member of Latinos Unidos, loves to listen to music and thoroughly enjoys reading. Her favorite book is We Were Here by Matt De La Peña. Sarahy's favorite snack is chicken nuggets, and she also participates in the One Million Degrees program.
Oscar Silis is majoring in Kinesiology. He is the President of Latinos Unidos, and a member of the German Club. He loves to play video games, enjoys watching sports and gardening. Oscar loves the color blue and his favorite foods are tacos and chicken wings.
Perla Tranquilino Rodriguez is exploring Biology as her major. She is the Vice President of Latinos Unidos student organization and loves to listen to music. She loves the color black and her favorite food is tacos. Perla is also a member of the International Students Club and she participates in the One Million Degrees program.