During our interaction with the Muchatha students on May 16, we explored qualities of a good role model and mentors. This was a follow up session that was prompted from a questionnaire we had previously asked the students to fill. From the feedback we realized that the students did not know what attributes to look out for when choosing role models and mentors. 

Who is a role model?

As we delved into the conversation, we asked the students to define a role model.

“A role model is someone you would like to become,” answered one girl. 

We built on that definition, explaining that a role model is someone whose behavior is worth emulating. From there, the students began identifying the values they admired from their role models like honesty, resilience, hard work, and a willingness to support others. One student mentioned her older sister, who balances school and part-time work. Another student talked about a former teacher who never gave up on him. This discussion contributed to a shift of mindset of who a role model is. 

These moments highlighted that role models are not always celebrities or public figures, they can be people close to us, quietly leading by example.

Who is a mentor?

We then shifted the conversation toward mentorship. When we asked the students to define what a mentor was, one boy raised his hand and said, laughing:

“A mentor is someone who helps people who are mental ill!”

From this definition there was something telling: most of the students were not familiar with what mentorship truly involves. When we asked how many had mentors, fewer than 10 hands went up.

We asked one of them to explain what a mentor does.

“They support you and give you advice,” a student offered.

They were on the right track. We explained that a mentor is someone more experienced who guides and supports someone less experienced, a mentee. We outlined the key qualities of a good mentor: being a great listener, helping set SMART goals, doing regular check-ins, offering honest feedback, and helping mentees grow their networks.

To wrap up the session, we asked the students to reflect on the people they consider role models or mentors to see if the individuals live out the values we discussed and if they are contributing to the student’s self-development. 

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Your support helps us continue these life-shaping conversations across schools like Muchatha. Whether you’re a potential partner, donor, or someone who believes in the power of mentorship, we invite you to walk this journey with us.

Let us raise a generation of mentors and role models.