SPHHP mentoring program offers support for students of color

Mentors: knowledgeable, helpful, engaged — and often hard to come by.

But not for undergraduate public health students of color in the School of Public Health and Health Professions, where the Envision Mentoring Program makes finding a mentor easier.

Created by Ebehitale Imobhio, assistant director of equity, diversity, inclusion, and community engagement, and Rose Thomas, MPH/MSW ’23, Envision is a now four-year-old effort to bring together professionals in the community who can offer their experience, insight and support to students hungry for guidance on their next steps. And, perhaps even more meaningfully, Envision aims to build community among students and mentors — and among students and their peers.

The idea for Envision came through conversations Imobhio and Thomas had at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. They wondered how they could boost the sense of community among students while also helping them see that they’re “not alone,” Imobhio says.

“We saw so much community among students around us and asked ourselves what we could offer,” Thomas adds.

A mentorship program seemed like a natural fit, especially given the size of the undergraduate public health program — more than 300 students and growing every day. After a successful, if entirely virtual, pilot in spring 2021, Envision got a name and funding.

“We want students to know that anything you put your mind to is achievable. The name ‘Envision’ references that,” Thomas explains.

Interestingly, both Thomas and Imobhio credit Mary Glenn, the school’s former assistant dean for community engagement and alumni relations who retired in 2023, with helping bring Envision to fruition.

“When it came to structure and guidance, a big part of our own mentorship was with Mary,” Imobhio says. “She was more than our supervisor for this — she was a mentor. She helped us make this come to life and connected us with lots of people. Her connections through her position really helped us jumpstart the program.” 

The yearly slate of Envision activities has expanded organically since then. After mentors and students are paired and introduced, they generally meet once a month, some in person and others still virtually due to work schedules or distance from each other. Students and mentors also get a comprehensive resource guide to help them make the most of the program.

Monthly events include graduate student panels, speed mentoring, visits to local health organizations, mock interviews and more. Holiday and end-of-the-year events might offer chances for budding gingerbread house artists to hone their skills, as well as take part in other festive doings.

“Everything we do is optional, but we also have an informal monthly hangout with no specific agenda,” Imobhio notes.

The hangouts actually emerged as a desire that mentors expressed in feedback surveys for more casual ways to interact with students.

“We take feedback seriously,” Imobhio says.

Rouge Rodriguez, currently a Master of Public Health student, values their Envision experience. “[It] has been an amazing program for me to receive guidance, especially during the last two years of my undergraduate career,” Rodriguez says. “The program connects undergraduate students of color with alumni or graduate students of color, which provided me with a lot of support and a safe space for me to express my challenges and barriers as a student of color with someone who could relate to me and advise me.”

Andy Canizares, MPH/MSW ’23, currently a project coordinator at the BRAVE (Buffalo Rising Against Violence) program at ECMC, was one of Rodriguez’s mentors.

“The most rewarding part of being a mentor is that feeling of paying it forward to students who, like me when I was their age, did not have the connections, social capital or professional experience that would help them navigate a successful career in public health,” Canizares says. “Being a mentor also expands my world because I get to connect to younger generations of students, which helps me understand what is similar and different in the things they’re going through compared to when I was a student.”

Envision has 19 pairs of students and mentors this academic year, which is about capacity given the number of available mentors. Imobhio and Thomas say they would love to expand the program because applications from students nearly always exceed mentor availability.

The number of available mentors has grown each year of the program, however, and with enthusiastic reactions. Many students say Envision changed their life in some way.

“I gained necessary skills useful for graduate school and beyond, and the program also allowed me to be in direct contact with a professional in health-related fields I am interested in,” Rodriguez adds. “My mentors gave me greater insight and knowledge into possible career opportunities open to me as a graduate with a public health degree and gave me more confidence in what I want to do in the future after graduate school.”

“We’re always excited when we get a positive email from students,” Thomas says. “Some get great internships, some say they really appreciate other people to talk to.” 

Adds Imobhio: “There are always mentors who say they wish this program had existed when they were students. If this program can change one student’s life or make their story better, we’ve had a successful year.”