ORCID

https://orcid.org/0009-0003-1389-5069

Date of Award

2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Education (Ed.D.)

Department

Administrative and Instructional Leadership

First Advisor

Barbara Cozza

Second Advisor

Anthony Annunziato

Third Advisor

Richard Bernato

Abstract

Marginalized students often feel a greater sense of detachment from their schools in comparison to non-marginalized peers (Bottiani et al., 2017). Mentorship programs provide positive experiences that enhance adolescents’ social, behavioral, and academic development. These programs help disconnected students establish a stronger connection within their school community. This phenomenological study examined the lived experiences of four underrepresented high school mentees. The researcher based the theoretical foundation for the study on Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory of cognitive development (1978) and Rhodes’ theory of mentorship (2005). The data collection process incorporated various methods including observations, interviews, field and reflection notes, personal documents, and archived data to provide a comprehensive understanding of the effect of the program. The researcher analyzed the data for this study through hand-coding methods and MAXQDA software. The findings revealed that the mentorship program helped mentees accrue social capital while enhancing their sense of belonging to the school. Finally, mentees described an increase in positive perceptions of themselves as learners. This study contributes to existing literature on mentorship programs by highlighting how mentorship can benefit underrepresented students. The identified themes underscore the importance of mentorship in addressing educational disparities and promoting positive outcomes for marginalized students. These findings are critical for schools seeking to implement or enhance mentorship initiatives as a means of supporting underrepresented populations.

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