By Melissa Stewart

Emma Dierig’s eyes light up and a big smile spreads across her little 7-year-old face when Paula McPeake visits her at school.

“I really enjoy spending time with Emma,” McPeake, of Florence, said. “She lights up when I walk in the classroom. I really like the one-on-one time with her. I can focus just on her. I listen. I’m interested in what she’s saying.”

McPeake is Emma’s mentor or coach in Stephens Elementary School’s new mentor program, Ment2Be.

“I like Paula a lot,” Emma, also of Florence, said. “I like when she comes to lunch and recess with me. I like when she helps me with my work and writing in my journal. She is nice.”

According to Emma’s mother, Darcy Dierig, Ment2Be is already making a difference.

“She is much more confident in her school work and looks forward to participating in the class now,” Dierig said. “Often times her mentor will visit during lunch. Just having a friend to help my daughter get through the hustle of the lunch experience and making her feel special by sitting with her and her friends has been a wonderful benefit of the program. If her mentor visits in the classroom, she helps my daughter focus on her task at hand and gives her that little extra confirmation that she is doing a good job.”

Ment2Be is a relationship-centered program that was tailor-made for Stephens. The curriculum – or playbook – was written by the school’s drama teacher, Chad Caddell.

“Every time we have a monthly faculty meeting, our staff is grieving over kids who are facing a variety of challenges,” he said. “We were always wondering, what if there was an extra person in their lives focusing on just them, someone to champion them.”

Caddell said teachers at Stephens “set the table for learning” everyday, but for many students it’s difficult to take away from that table because of other things they’re dealing with in their lives. Caddell said the teachers were tired of wondering and decided to move forward with a mentoring program. He researched programs from all over the U.S. and customized Ment2Be just for Stephens.

“Ment2Be is about relationships,” he said. “Programs don’t change lives, but relationships do. The kids who participate in Ment2Be light up when they’re with their mentor. They look forward to seeing them and we’re already seeing tremendous wins and an increase in confidence and success in school.”

Caddell said 40 students and adults are participating in the program. He hopes there will be 70 by the end of the year. Current coaches include teachers, a college student, retirees, business folks and a grandmother.

Those interested in coaching need to fill out an application and go through a screening and training process. Coaches spend 45 minutes to an hour each week with the student they are partnered with; they visit during lunch, recess, or spend time in the classroom. For more information on being a coach, contact Caddell at 859-334-4460.

Dierig said she is thankful that Ment2Be is at Stephens and that it is a wonderful asset for all involved.

“Having a mentor that is just for that one child lets them know that they are cared for and that they are important and valuable,” she said. “My daughter has some learning difficulties and having a mentor at school means she has someone she can connect with, that she knows will not hurt her feelings, but rather help her through that struggle. Building a relationship with her mentor encourages my daughter to dream and realize she can do anything and that there are people out there who want to help.”

McPeake, who has a grandson at Camp Ernst Middle School, said her relationship with Emma means a lot to her too.

“I enjoy her honesty,” she said. “We are a good match. Emma was hoping for someone to be like a grandmother and who likes Marvel comics. I hope Ment2Be takes off and other mentors come to help. This is a game changer for students. I really believe when they look back on their lives, they will say, ‘This really made a difference.’”