Mission statement

• The Rutgers University Faculty Mentoring Program for Student-Athletes (RU FacMenSA) aims to foster understanding between the University's faculty members and staff (FMs) and student-athletes (SAs) and to provide these students with role models outside their normal academic and athletic environments. The program is designed to be flexible in its scope and encompassing in its vision, so that both SAs and FMs may garner maximum benefit from the program. SAs may ask FMs to serve as informal career counselors, general life advisors, mature adults in whom to confide in loco parentis, or in other appropriate functions.

• Approved by the President of the University, this program has also been endorsed by the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, the Board of Governors Committee on Intercollegiate Athletics, the Academic Athletic Oversight Committee, and the Office of the Director of Intercollegiate Athletics.

• In addition, faculty members not assigned to a specific team have agreed to serve in their area(s) of interest and/or expertise as individual mentors for SAs.  This program, called FacMenSA IND, will allow SAs the opportunity to receive advice on their choice of major, to discuss career goals, or to get help in considering graduate or professional schools.

What is a mentor?

• The Mentoring.org website defines a mentor as “an adult who, along with parents, provides a young person with support, counsel, friendship, reinforcement and constructive example. Mentors are good listeners, people who care, people who want to help young people bring out strengths that are already there” (5 September 2010). As such, FMs must be involved in the everyday lives of SAs; in so doing, a relationship of mutual trust should be encouraged to understand the goals and needs of the other.

How will RU FacMenSA work at Rutgers?

• RU FacMenSA program will seek out faculty members who will volunteer to mentor student-athletes who desire to be mentored. That is, the program will not require anyone, faculty or student, to give time when he or she does not have it. The structure of the University and of the athletics programs and time constraints prohibit the program from becoming anything other than voluntary.

• RU FacMenSA mentors will be assigned to (or volunteer for) specific sports groups, not individuals. In this way, a mentor can become familiar with several students, can attend games, matches, events, or meets in which groups are involved, and can thus not be saddled with undue extra work. If there were ever to exist a critical mass from which to select mentors, a more individual one-on-one mentor to student relationship could be established.
• FacMenSA IND will volunteer to mentor SAs who desire to be counseled in a specific field of interest to the faculty member. Those faculty will be available on a contact basis for career advice, general course advising, and other areas relevant to the position.
  

How does one learn to become a mentor, or to be mentored?

• Mentors should be trained in how to mentor (http://www.mentoring.org/). Good mentors are good listeners who give advice only when requested to do so. Good mentors enjoy being with young people and sharing in their interests. Another site that can offer mentors helpful suggestions can be found at The Mentoring Group.
  • Good FMs develop a relationship, generally informal, with students that transcends the typical student-teacher interrelationship by showing the human side of being a teacher and advisor in a university setting.  They focus on life issues, not just academic ones, and they are certainly not to be taken for tutors in some subject area.

• Students should likewise be taught how to behave in a mentoring relationship; clearly, they will have to decipher which advice to follow and which to leave aside. Students must therefore decide, using good judgment, how much faith to place in the mentor; they should see mentors as “sounding boards“ for life choices and career development, but not as glorified tutors, which the mentors cannot and will not be.

• Mentoring relationships are cultivated and not instantly installed.  Thus, training on the process of mentoring will be provided to those who wish it.

RU FacMenSA participants and the sport(s) for which they serve as mentors

• Dr. Shawn Arent, SAS-NB Exercise Science and Sports Studies
• Wrestling, Men's Soccer
• Dr. Bruce Babiarz, SAS-NB Cell Biology and Neuroscience; Director of the Health Professions Office
  • Women's Soccer
• Dr. Ray Caprio, Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
• Golf
• Mr. Kevin Ewell, Assistant Dean, School of Communication and Information
  
• Women's Track and Field/CC
• Dr. Gustav Friedrich, School of Communication and Information
  
• Women's Crew, Women's Swimming and Diving
• Dr. Mike Greenberg, Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
• Baseball
  
• Dr. Jeff King, SAS-NB Philosophy
• Women's Swimming and Diving
• Dr. Ernie Lepore, SAS-NB Philosophy
• Wrestling
• Dr. Jorge Marcone, SAS-NB Spanish and Portuguese, Comparative Literature, and Latin American Studies
  
• Men's Basketball
• Dr. Carl Kirschner, Special Counselor for Integrative Academic Programs, Office of the Executive Vice-President for Academic Affairs
• Football, Field Hockey
• Mr. Steven Miller, School of Communication and Information
  
• Volleyball, Women's Lacrosse, Softball, Field Hockey
• Dr. Bill Rodgers, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, Chief Economist, John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce
• Men's Basketball
• Dr. Dona Schneider, Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
• Women's Basketball
• Dr. D. Randy Smith, SAS-NB Sociology
• Gymnastics
• Dr. Thomas Stephens, SAS-NB Spanish and Portuguese; NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative
• Men's Lacrosse, Men's Track and Field/CC
• Dr. Amy Wollock, GSE-NB, Assistant Dean for Admissions and Academic Services, Director of Teacher Education
  
• Women's Tennis, Golf

RU FacMenSA IND participants and the area(s) for which they will serve as individual mentors

• Dr. Carl Kirschner, Special Counselor for Integrative Academic Programs, Office of the Executive Vice-President for Academic Affairs
  • core values, techniques for appropriate decision making, conflict resolution, career choices
    
• Dr. Ben. Sifuentes-Jáuregui, SAS-NB American Studies
• Spanish literature, gender studies, American Studies, comparative literature
• Dr. Thomas Stephens, SAS-NB Spanish and Portuguese; NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative
• Spanish, Portuguese, Romance linguistics, Latin American studies; issues of race and ethnicity in Latin America, career choices

Mentoring Programs @ Rutgers and Other Mentoring Resources on the Web

• Princeton University Academic-Athletic Fellows program
• Mentoring directory
• Mentoring of women and girls
• Mentoring.org
• Michigan State mentoring program
  
• Wesleyan University program

For more information on the RU FacMenSA program, please contact the NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative.