{"238781":{"#nid":"238781","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Tech Students, Alumni Make Connections","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EFive years ago, about 50 students were matched with Tech alumni as part of a mentorship program. Last year, that number grew to over 1,200, and the Student Alumni Association (SAA) hopes more students and Tech alumni \u2014 especially those who are faculty and staff members \u2014 will take advantage of the opportunity to forge these relationships.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMentor Jackets pairs students with Tech alumni for mentoring, networking and building relationships with others in the Tech community.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022I had no idea how valuable my relationship with my mentor would be,\u201d said Sarah Pospisil, a second-year business administration student going into her second year with a mentor. \u201cThrough her, I have been able to target my career goals. My experience at Tech would not have been the same without Mentor Jackets.\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMentor Jackets pairs students and alumni based on academic majors, student involvement, areas of expertise, degrees earned, hometowns, and other skills and interests. Mentors may be located in Atlanta or anywhere else in the world. The program encourages them to communicate on a regular basis in whatever form works best for them, whether via email, phone, or in person.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ERich Steele, alumnus and senior director of Auxiliary Services, has been a mentor for five years and can\u2019t imagine a better way to help students than by serving as a resource to help them achieve all that is possible in their college career and beyond.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI have really enjoyed helping students tweak resumes, prepare for interviews, and take advantage of campus resources,\u201d Steele added. \u201cMy experience working at Tech has enabled me to offer a perspective about campus life that mentees seem to truly value.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMentor Jackets also hosts more structured events throughout the year, such as speed networking and beginning and end-of-year celebrations. Participants can meet other mentors and mentees, enabling mentees to practice skills they\u2019re honing and mentors to meet fellow alumni and find new ways to get involved. To participate, students must be members of SAA, which they can join for an annual $10 donation to Tech.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIf you are a student, faculty, or staff member who is interested in becoming involved with the program, click \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.gtmentorjackets.com\u0022\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EFive years ago, about 50 students were matched with Tech alumni as part of a mentorship program. Last year, that number grew to over 1,200, and the Student Alumni Association (SAA) hopes more students and Tech alumni \u2014 especially those who are faculty and staff members \u2014 will take advantage of the opportunity to forge these relationships.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Mentor Jackets pairs students with Tech alumni for mentoring, networking and building relationships with others in the Tech community."}],"uid":"27445","created_gmt":"2013-09-18 17:29:14","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:14:56","author":"Amelia Pavlik","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2013-09-18T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2013-09-18T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"233291":{"id":"233291","type":"image","title":"Mentor Jackets","body":null,"created":"1449243627","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 15:40:27","changed":"1475894906","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:48:26","alt":"Mentor Jackets","file":{"fid":"197606","name":"rich_mentorjax.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/rich_mentorjax_0.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/rich_mentorjax_0.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":4659863,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/rich_mentorjax_0.jpg?itok=eim7ssav"}}},"media_ids":["233291"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.gtmentorjackets.com\/","title":"Mentor Jackets"}],"groups":[{"id":"1259","name":"Whistle"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"506","name":"alumni"},{"id":"74441","name":"faculty alumni"},{"id":"40891","name":"mentor jackets"},{"id":"3829","name":"mentors"},{"id":"171299","name":"staff alumni"},{"id":"167406","name":"Student Alumni Association"},{"id":"166847","name":"students"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:laura.giglio@alumni.gatech.edu\u0022\u003ELaura Giglio\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EAlumni Association\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}