Experiences

"The first time I met Stephanie, she was quiet and shy...boy, has that changed!! This will be my 3rd semester in Project S.M.I.L.E. and every day with her is an adventure. It definitely takes a lot of energy to keep up with her! We both love to eat hot cheetos and go to mentor/mentee events. Outside of S.M.I.L.E., we've gone to the movies and shopping, and I took her and her cousins to Waterworld over the summer. I'm really happy to be part of her life, and she also shows appreciation for me--she's always proud to show me her good test grades. I don't consider mentoring as an obligation to take time out of my schedule for her...it's just like hanging out with a good friend." - Ann Huynh, Fall 2006

"This is my 4th semester in Project SMILE and I love it!! You know that happy feeling you get when your cell rings and it's from someone you really care about? That's how my relationship with my mentee, Aldrine (aka Nine), is like. We're more than mentor-mentee, we're like sisters! We both like to listen to music and watch funny movies. Nine loves horror films but me ehhh not so much. SMILE has been such an inspiring and stress-relieving experience. Just putting my efforts and focus on someone else's life and opinions instead of always living in the "Berkeley bubble" is really awesome. The only regret I have is that I didn't join Project SMILE sooner." - Bonnie Chung, Fall 2006

"This is my 6th semester with Project SMILE and this program has been one of the most fulfilling college experiences. I’ve been working with my current mentee for four semesters now and we have a great relationship built around trust, curiosity, and having fun. We instantly clicked and have been close since our first Meet Mentee Day. We share many common interests such as being engaged in biological sciences, playing video games, participating in ultimate frisbee, as well doing weekend excursions outside the program. Over the summer vacation, I took him and his younger brother to Magic Mountain for Gen’s (the younger brother) birthday as well as taking them to dimsum for the first time in their lives.
Project SMILE gives you the opportunity to reach out and help change a child’s life. Although I’ve been blessed to be matched up not only with a talented and motivated mentee, our interaction helps foster a better ethos and community in his after-school classrooms. The adolescents in these classrooms view Cal students as successful adults and really want us to be their companions; to treat them with respect while also having fun. My belief is that we can help educate these children a lot more efficiently if we’re able to establish a rapport based on companionship and trust." - Jonathan Lee, Spring 2006

"My mentee anansa and I have a great time together and even share a favorite food, sticky rice. We share an interest in gymnastics and candy. We had an especially good time at the top of the campanile checking out Berkeley from above. Were two fun loving girls, and she actually does her homework. YAY! my mentee rocks!" - Lauren Grand, Spring 2006

"I began mentoring the spring of 2004 with Darrian Perry, who is now entering his last semester at Longfellow. My first semester mentoring was not how I pictured it would go at all. I encountered numerous problems with our relationship, both academically and personally. Academically, Darrian struggled in school and he did not have the motivation to attempt to do well in school. He often lied about his homework and never showed me his schoolwork. Personally, I had difficulties attempting to get him to open up to me, to tell me his problems. He always claimed he was doing fine and wanted to be independent. Moreover, he has a short temper, getting mad whenever I forced him to work or when I refused to let him do what he wanted to do. I felt discouraged by our relationship and considered being rematch by the end of the semester. However, I decided to continue on and give him another chance. With the help of his mother, Darrian began to focus more on school, raising his gpa from below a 2.0 to a 2.5. Although I only mentored on fridays when the students had no work, I always try to push him on ethical issues and his academic future. Our relationship slowly began to develop and I am glad I didnt give up on him. We continue to have some tensions and I still have great difficulties getting him to listen and do homework. But, I enjoyed getting to know him and seeing his improvements and I hope he continues to do better in high school and reach his goal of attending a university." - Jason Chu, Spring 2006