Bethel School District

What is the Bethel Mentor Club?

A man and a young person sit at a table, playing a game with wooden pieces. The Bethel Mentor Club connects caring community volunteers with middle school students in the Bethel School District to build supportive, trusting relationships that foster resilience, confidence, and self-esteem. Launched in 2019 at Cascade and Shasta Middle Schools, the program offers weekly lunchtime meetups where students and mentors talk, play games, and build connection. Led by Program Coordinator Christy Sheerin and Site Coordinator Kate Eterno, the program is powered entirely by volunteers. School counselors identify students who may benefit from additional support, whether they're navigating social challenges, housing instability, or simply in need of a trusted adult to talk to. Participation is voluntary and requires parent permission. Mentors commit to just 40 minutes a week for the school year and receive training and ongoing support to help them build meaningful relationships with students.

How Does Mentoring Help Students?

People are seated at tables, some painting and others looking on in a classroom setting.

Mentoring in the middle school years is important because it is a time when students may feel isolated or lonely amid a variety of challenges. By matching middle school students with adults in the community, the Bethel Mentor Program provides students with an opportunity to have one-on-one time with a caring adult during lunch each week to share their interests, strengths, and concerns.

Just by being there to listen each week, mentors model a trusting relationship and can offer the encouragement and support students need. Research shows that mentoring may help students improve their self-esteem, socialization skills, and compatibility with peers, as well as their outlook on school and life. In addition, mentored students are more likely to have better school attendance.

This type of support is especially important in today’s world. Many students are struggling with gaps in academic and social-emotional learning after a year or more of virtual learning, and in many ways, the world seems like a more complex place. A consistent relationship with trusted adults is one of the foundations of helping students develop resilience–the ability to thrive amid the challenges they face.

How Do I Become a Volunteer Mentor?

Thank you for your interest in the mentor program!

Steps to become a volunteer with the Bethel Mentor Club

Complete a Bethel School District volunteer background check and Safe Schools training
Click here to begin your background check and Safe Schools training. If you’ve already done this for another Bethel volunteer role, please confirm that your status will still be current for the upcoming school year. If you have any questions about Safe Schools or the background check, feel free to email Zulen Medrano at Zulen.Medrano@bethel.k12.or.us.
Fill out the Bethel Mentor Club Questionnaire
Follow this link to complete the questionnaire. This form helps school counselors at Shasta and Cascade match you with a student. It also asks about your preferred school and lunch time.
Attend a volunteer orientation
Once we recieve your completed questionnaire, we’ll reach out to scheduel a volunteer orientation.This brief, 1-hour training introduces you to the program, the schools we serve, and key strategies for building strong mentor relationships. Coordinators are available during each lunch session to provide ongoing support throughout the school year.
Start mentoring once students are settled into the school year
After you’re matched with a student, we’ll contact you with your start date and arrange an initial meeting with the school counselor. You’ll receive helpful context about your student and support during your first mentor lunch.

Important note: In order to ensure confidentiality in the mentor relationship, parents of students at Cascade and Shasta may not mentor at their student’s school. If your student attends Cascade, you may be a mentor at Shasta; if your student attends Shasta, you may mentor at Cascade.

If you have any questions, please email bethelmentorprogram@bethel.k12.or.us We look forward to mentoring with you!

Two people stand side-by-side, smiling, with arms crossed in front of a purple mural.