Establishing and Maintaining Relationships

So this week we went over two sections in class, defining roles and establishing and maintaining relationships. Primarily establishing and maintaining relationships. I really liked the way Kelly and Nick decided to lead the class starting off with the question about what kind of oppurtunities we have enjoyed since being here at Iowa State and how we would pass them on to new students. Their are so many oppurtunities that I don't think that I could list them all but I would have to say that in the last year or so being involved in the learning communities and being in differnet clubs and organizations were a few of my favorites. I really liked the way they implemented a work sheet into class where we decided to come up with our own definitions of the five roles of the peer mentor. In my group we defined a trusted friend as someone who you could rely on, somebody you could talk to about certain information. Also somebody that could be their for you.
Deb and I began the class with a question involving the establishment of the relationship with our first peer mentors and what we remembered about them. During the class we implemented some scenarios that were acted out. After the skits were completed we asked what was done right and what could have been better. The first scenario involved commitment. When you commit or promise to do something, you follow through on it. You accepted that challenge and if you fail to commit, you could damge your credibility.
The seconed skit involved confidentiality. Basically, what I learned from this is that if someone needs assistance and comes to you and the issue is said in confidence, you need to protect that person by not sharing that information with other people. If the situation happens to be desperate and your not sure what to do you can ask for guidance from someone higher in the program such as Allie, Silas, or Deborah. We were told that in the past that their have been situations that need the help of others and not just ourselves.
The final skit we went through involved that of boundaries. We are in a position that represents this program. One important thing to establish early on is the idea of boundaries. We want the students to open up to us and share their problems but we do not want to become too involved with their personal issues. Your in a position where you can set the boundaries and the lines not to be crossed.
Finally, we asked the question "Why are we here?" When becoming a peer mentor we have to clarify our roles. Students may not believe what your trying to do is helpful unless they understand your personal motive. In the book it mentions that they need to know that we have a real concern for their well-being and success as a student. Without this knowledge, why should they trust us in helping them.