Student Mentor Interview

Andre, a socially mobile 2010 graduate of Wellborn University, has been enjoying a successful software sales career in New York City. When I arrived, I stepped out of my car for Andre to help me park (raised in Arizona, my parallel parking skills are null). He happily greeted me as he took my keys and moved my driver’s seat all the way back. Being well over 6’ tall, he towered over me. On our way to his apartment building he expressed his excitement for my association with Lori before directing me to stop in my tracks and look ahead. In front of me was an unobstructed view of The Statue of Liberty. He gleefully told me that the view from the apartment’s patio was one of the best in the city. I interviewed him in the lobby of his posh apartment
building in the financial district of Manhattan while residents darted by wearing high end athletic clothing and walking small dogs.
Once a child living in project housing in Philadelphia, Andre seemed to fit right into the hustle and bustle of high class Manhattan living. He spoke elegantly while smiling and holding his eye contact. He remained positive throughout our interview despite describing race and social class obstacles he has had to overcome throughout his life. In college he welcomed these moments of misunderstandings from his peers as teaching opportunities:
Andre: So like if there were things that were coming up were like—luckily for me, or not luckily for me—I’m not easily offended per say and like a lot of time I like will step back and have a more like empathetic viewpoint of someone's ignorance… at first. I'll take that moment to like teach them or tell them like "yo, that's not cool" and like "here's why." And then from there I expect you to like, now that you know better, to do better so that we don't run into the same situations again.
Andre is no stranger to being black from a working class background in white upper-middle class social spaces. He describes his first year at Wellborn as “an amplified version of what it was like going to fifth grade for the first time.” Although his 5-12 school was more racially diverse than Wellborn, it was still primarily white and middle/ upper-middle class. Attending the school prepared him to represent his background while respecting the backgrounds of others.
The highly ranked magnet school Andre attended equipped him with the skills and knowledge necessary to attend Wellborn University. Several studies have found that students in magnet schools outperform their public school educated counterparts in reading (Blank et. al 1983 and Bifulco et. al 2009), math (Blank et. al 1983; Betts 2006 and Bifulco et. al 2009), and social studies (Gamoran 1996). Furthermore, Magnet schools have been found to have high performing students who value their education, satisfied parents, and empowering teachers (Flaxman et. al 1997 and Orfield 2013). Throughout our interview Andre stressed the impact his teachers have had on him. He gives names of several teachers but two teachers stick out: his 5th grade teacher, Ms. Goodell and his economics teacher—who was also his basketball coach—Mr. Brinley. He remains in contact with both teachers. Ms. Goodell helped Andre to have a smooth transition from his public school to the magnet school:
Interviewer: Can you tell me more about her (Ms. Goodell)?
Andre: […] It was the first time I went to school with um kids of other races and other um ethnicity's and it's really cool to see cause like at that age being exposed to it like it wasn't—like you start to learn that like people are different—and that seems like such a simple thing that we all know now but when you're so used to seeing everyone that looks like you doing the same thing, going to the same places, and then you go to school with people that are different than you… um that's been kinda rocky a little bit and uh I think that she did a great job of just like being in tune with all of us as students um during that transition. […] You know, it was definitely harder than the elementary school I previously come from and like more was expected of you and demanded of you. And I think she did a really great job um of making sure that kids progressed and um yeah. She was great.
In addition to keeping him motivated, Ms. Goodell also helped him to integrate into his new school. Andre had previously gone to a primarily black school where his race and culture were well represented. It is unclear of exactly how Ms. Goodell helped him to integrate but it can be inferred that Andre accumulated cultural capital in order to understand his new milieu. Furthermore, he was well equipped to navigate the social and cultural transition to Wellborn. In addition to the capital he received as a result of his relationship with Ms. Goodell, Mr. Brinley also assisted in his accumulation of capital.
Andre played basketball in high school and was being recruited by universities. Thus, he had a non-traditional college application process. However, he still had to put forth effort in his Wellborn application:
Interviewer: Did you have anyone help you with the college application process?
Andre: My high school basketball coach I think was pretty instrumental in that. Um but because I was getting recruited for athletics, like it worked a little bit differently where-- I only fil-- I only filled out one application essentially to Wellborn. […] Um but even so, he helped me through that. Like I couldn't just like B.S. it or anything like that.
Through activating his social capital and seeking help from Mr. Brinley, Andre was able to gain the cultural capital he needed to complete his college application. This support ensured successful placement in college that he may not have been able to attain without the help of an individual with the human capital necessary to assist in the writing of a college admittance essay.
Perhaps even more important to Andre’s trajectory than his magnet school teachers were his elementary school teachers who acted as gatekeepers to the magnate school. Prior to attending the magnet school, Andre went to an underfunded public school in Philadelphia. While resources were scarce at this school, he did have caring teachers who made strides to place him in a school with better opportunities:
Andre: […] my elementary school teachers—they were very instrumental in… and my counselors—they were very, very instrumental in like pushing me and like you know helping out my family in whatever way they could to you know get me in it and consequently later on my younger brother into the same school.
It is interesting that Andre’s teachers went to great lengths to help him and his brother transfer to the magnet school. He did not mention if this was a common practice in his public elementary school or if his teachers saw something special in him and his brother that caused them to put forth greater efforts. I was unable to locate discourse that supports a prevalence of teachers and counselors assisting in magnet school transfers and therefore, I find it to be unusual case. However, it is possible that this is a common, yet unstudied, occurrence in inter-city schools. This may be especially true for students who demonstrate promise in their early education.
Andre’s social connection to a guidance counselor Ms. Howard, exposed him to cultural capital early in his adolescent educational career. In elementary school Andre took part in a country line dancing group which Ms. Howard organized. The group traveled around the United States including Disney World:
Andre: So she like organized this country line dancing group and I think she just like took a liking to me and like my family and stuff like that and um... I remember her always trying to like expose us to different things. Like she took us to the opera and stuff—but anyways—she was like very instrumental in like getting me into that school (5-12 magnet school).
The effects of cultural participation before the age of 12 have been shown to positively increase the likelihood of having successful educational transitions in the future. Those who participate in cultural activities before the age of 12 are more likely to begin and finish college than those who do not (Ashaffenburg and Maas 1997). Through is travels and participation, Andre gained valuable cultural capital. In addition to exposing him to cultural experiences, Ms. Howard also helped Andre to apply to the 5-12 Blue Ribbon magnet school.
Not only did Andre’s school have exemplary teachers that bolstered his success, but his magnet school also provided superior resources.
Free SAT preparation, before and after school programs, tutoring, athletic programs, and student-to-student mentoring were amongst the many resources the school offered. Andre took advantage of as many resources as possible. He credits his school, teachers, and peers for motivating his involvement in sports, extracurricular clubs, and participation in further education opportunities. Andre speaks highly of the student-to-student mentoring program in which he was both a mentee and mentor:
Interviewer: Why did you decide to apply for it (the mentoring program)?
Andre: Um I remember it being a very positive uh experience in my own life. Like my peer counselor uh who is a cool kid […] and you know someone who I could talk to who was kind of removed from my life which feels good sometimes too.

Andre’s positive experience with the mentoring program led him to apply to become a mentor in the same program. There was a thorough application process which required students to be nominated by peer mentors and teachers. Moreover, students had to complete several weeks of training. The program had a tutoring component in which mentors who received high marks in a course would tutor students who needed additional help in those
courses.