SOROPTIMIST INTERNATIONAL of BURLINGAME-SAN MATEO/MID-PENINSULA
COMMUNITY SERVICE PROJECTS

Soroptimist International of Burlingame-San Mateo-Mid Peninsula has joined with Cheryl Lawton at Hillsdale High School in San Mateo to form a mentoring program. This program will progress the girls from their Junior Year into their Senior Year of high school. We have girls with all different interests who just need that extra boost to become excited about their educations again. We show the girls the community and its possibilities through activities and meetings where we hold discussions.

This is the second year of our program; during the first year we saw an increase in grades, an excitement to new interests, and communication increased through respect and understanding of one another.

The girls in our program deal with a wide assortment of issues: self-esteem, health, their futures, possible careers, college choices, etcetera. As Mentors we discuss these issues with them and let them discuss them with each other in a safe environment; many times opening their eyes to a different perspective that they had not thought of previously. This program has given our girls a chance to interact with other girls outside of their normal social group and to be realistic about their futures.

Activities include meetings at lunch at the school and field trips into the community. After the initial meeting, we will look at the interests of the girls in the group and determine where would be educational to visit. We hope to have about three field trips for the 2007-2008 school years. Field trips are dependant upon the girls’ grades and class standing, as they are normally held during class time or on a minimum day. Possible field trips will be taken to museums, art exhibits, colleges in the area (junior as well as 4 year) and job fairs.

We are hoping to add two or three more women to the list within the first three months of the school year. If you are interested please contact us.