New School Mentorship Program Connects

6th and 9th Graders at SAAS

By: Sarah-Mae McCullough, Editorial Content Manager

When Julie Holstad became Seattle Academy’s 6th Grade Dean of Students a few years ago, she noticed a disconnect. 6th graders, brand new to SAAS, didn’t have clear opportunities to get to know the older, Upper School students they passed in the hallways or spotted at school events. There was a sense of mystery, with younger students wondering, “What is the Upper School experience like? What are Upper Schoolers like?”

In the SAAS ethos of “one school” – uniting school community members across various interests, backgrounds, and grade levels – Julie approached Upper School dean Alisha Agard about possible ways to connect 6th graders and Upper School students. The two eventually worked with Upper School dean Allison Reddy to create a new mentorship program that launched this year. 

Cardinal Connectors, in which selected 9th graders mentor 6th grade advisory groups, kicked off with a successful pilot program this winter – and is expected to expand for next school year. 

9th grade “Connectors” will have visited their assigned advisory group six times by the end of the school year, leading activities and games and talking about their experience at SAAS. The goal is creating a more unified school community, while helping Middle Schoolers make a big transition and Upper Schoolers grow as leaders. 

SAAS embodies the “one school” principle of unity in many ways, Julie and Alisha say, and Cardinal Connectors is another step in that direction. A sense of togetherness on campus is bolstered by SAAS’s curriculum, which encourages students to sample a wide variety of classes where they’ll likely encounter peers with different interests, for example. And each End of Tri assembly brings the whole school together to cheer on each other’s performances. 

“The more that we can set up these kinds of situations where there’s a shared experience, the more that everyone feels part of the broader community,” Julie says. A sense of “I'm a Middle School student, or I'm an Upper School student,” becomes, “I’m a SAAS student.” 

9th grader Goldie Lackman applied to become a mentor partly because she was excited to get to know students in a different grade. She hopes her 6th grade mentees will feel comfortable saying hi in the hallways and “feel like they have someone they can talk to.”

“It’s important to connect with your own grade and teacher, but you learn so much from older kids and younger kids too,” she says. 

Another strength of Cardinal Connectors is supporting 6th graders as they start Middle School and experience many new transitions, from switching classes throughout the day to shifting social dynamics. 9th graders are well-positioned to empathize with those adjustments, faculty leaders say. They’ve recently completed Middle School and are now making an adjustment of their own as new Upper Schoolers. 

9th grader Owen Siebers is familiar with challenging transitions and, as a Connector, was eager to draw on his own experiences. 

“I’ve moved around schools a lot… I’ve transitioned a lot,” he says. “I understand how hard it is. It’s awesome to help 6th graders transition into Middle School.”

For 9th graders, Cardinal Connectors can also be a valuable learning experience, setting them up for future leadership roles. Mentors received leadership training in January before reaching out to their advisory groups and developing their own activities that will “bring a joyful presence to the room,” Alisha says. 

Mentor Dominic Coppolillo says he hopes to keep gaining leadership, communication, and organizational skills as he plans out advisory sessions, coordinates with teachers, and takes the lead with a group of 6th graders. 

So far, we’ve “gotten so much positive feedback about how amazing the Connectors have been in the classroom, and how positive the reactions of the 6th graders have been,” Julie says. Faculty and student leaders are eager to watch Cardinal Connectors grow, with next year’s program starting earlier on in the year. 

Owen, whose sister is a 6th grade mentee this year, has a particular vision in mind. 

“Maybe when my sister gets into 9th grade, she'll be a Cardinal Connector as well, and she'll get to show a bunch of 6th graders how she can be a leader,” he says. “And she can say, ‘I was in this program in your shoes once, and now I get to lead you.’”