Student Recruitment Introduction Introduction Every high school student deserves the attention and support provided by EnvironMentors. Yet, we can only serve a very small fraction of students. The investment of time provided by Directors, Coordinators, Teachers, and mentors is quite high to make EnvironMentors successful. It is extremely important for Directors, Coordinators and Teachers to approach student recruitment wisely, and set aside the time needed to do so. Student retention is an ongoing issue. Coordinators and teachers can help mitigate attrition that occurs in the later months of the program by investing time needed in the early weeks to recruit the students with the best possible chances of success. To do this read the student recruitment section carefully and work together with your EnvironMentors teacher to determine which students will be the most successful in the program. Student Eligibility and Recruitment EnvironMentors’ mission is to serve students who are under-represented in the sciences. This language allows for broad interpretation of target student populations across our diverse chapter network. The national office has created the following, non-exhaustive list of student groups that we believe are “under-represented in the sciences”: -
Students of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds; Women; Students from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds; Students from broad geographic areas; and At-risk youth
While considering variability across chapter geography, demographics, socioeconomics, and partner school districts, the national office encourages chapters to consider the following factors when determining student eligibility for their chapter’s EnvironMentors program: -
Interest in science and the environment; Commitment to the program (both in interest/motivation and time availability); “Middle of the road” students who neither benefit from honors programs and AP classes, nor qualify for remediation classes; Maturity (to undertake the level of work required, and to fully-understand scientific research).
Tips for Student Recruitment Recruit those students who have the best chances for success including interest in science and the environment, maturity, motivation, accountability, family stability, and not over extended in extracurricular activities
ďƒź Recruit students who have participated in EnvironMentors before and ask these students for referrals, post flyers around school, exhibit at school club fairs, or advertise during the morning announcements ďƒź Review with students the Student Expectations and the Program Calendar in their entirety ďƒź Overall, present EnvironMentors as unique fun, cool, and something that they are fortunate to have the opportunity to participate in Fun Ideas to Raise Interest in EnvironMentors -
Show one or two of the EnvironMentors videos Review samples of past projects Go over the manual and discuss the benefits of mentorship Introduce them to the many well paying careers that are now and will be increasingly available through the new green economy. Have students write down their favorite pastime or issue and show them how it is related to the environment.