In our Secondary building, we've seen our students find new engagement with a biweekly program introduced as 'Sidekicks'. Introduced by our counselors, ASE is seeing new students befriend and collaborate easier with returning students.
ASE Sidekicks is our student mentor program where we match up students who are new to ASE with a student who has been here for more than a year. They all will meet every other week throughout the first semester during DEAR time. We're excited to report that there are over 136 Sidekick groups who have been partnered up this year to build new connections and experience fun activities!
Sidekicks is designed to pair a new student to ASE with 1-2 returning students, allowing them to get help as needed when it comes to engaging with the school culture, class and house tips, and engage in school activities. Returning students get to mentor those they're paired with and we strive to see new friendships bloom and increased involvement, participation, and engagement with this program.
We're beyond excited to share more updates on the success of this program as it develops!