Student: Tony Sarda
Classification: senior
Hometown: Miami, Fla.
Major: Economics and Finance
Creative activity: Created a peer-mentoring program within the Lamar University Honors Program
Synopsis of Work: During their sophomore year, Sarda and a friend in the honors program, Boone Drummond, had a conversation about things they wished they’d known as freshmen. They decided incoming students should benefit from their experience and gained approval from Dr. Donna Birdwell, honors program director, to create a peer-mentoring program. Sarda and Drummond recruited other honors students to serve as mentors and launched the program in January 2006. Birdwell gave the students creative free rein while supervising to make sure their timeline remained on track. Peer mentoring now has become an integral part of the Lamar University Honors Program.
Dates of Activity: Fall 2005 to present
Presentations: Presented at the idea exchange of the National Collegiate Honors Council in Philadelphia in November 2006 and in a session at the NCHC in Denver in October 2007.
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Donna Birdwell
Tony Sarda: “I’ve developed the attitude of, ‘Don’t let anyone tell you no. Even if it’s hard, if you think it’s going to be a benefit, go ahead and try to do it.’ Being in the honors program, especially starting the peer-mentoring program, it’s kind of led the way for me to explore what else I can do.”
