KANSAS CITY, Mo. — More than 700 students in the Kansas City Public Schools are being matched with with role models in the community as part of the district's mentoring program, which launched two years ago.
The program pairs students with adults in the community to help inspire, encourage and guide them to success in school and in life.
"I wanted to give back," Johnathan Duncan said, "I was lucky enough to have a mentor in my life, many mentors in my life, that told me I could do better and that everyday I should try to do better."
Once a week, he and his seventh-grade mentee, Rayon Miller, meet at Central High School. The two talk about the day and Duncan helps Miller with his school work.
"If we are not present and we don't invest in where we live, then we can't be upset when things aren't going as planned," Duncan said. "If we want to be part of the successes and fix the things that are wrong, we have to give back and invest our time into the youth of this community to make sure they're going to come back and invest again."
Last year, the district launched a campaign to recruit more mentors as about 600 students waited to be matched.
Individuals wanting to become a mentor must apply online, attend a two-hour training session and complete a background check.
