All the students at Howell High School can tell you what those vibrant neon green shirts represent. Those shirts are given to the select few who participate in a program HHS sponsors called Link Crew, who helps transition freshmen into their high school life. Link Crew Mentoring is a step above, they take individual freshman and try to guide them through their first year. This program has 160 mentors. It is led by the Leadership teacher, Aaron Metz and is generally considered a successful program to help freshman students throughout the year. Each mentor guides three freshman who  they visit for one hour every week.

“This program was started to bring upper and underclassmen together and give the freshmen someone to look up to throughout the year,” Metz says.

The mentoring program offers benefits for students and teachers alike. The Link Crew Mentors receive a sense of responsibility and school spirit as they help the future senior Highlanders with the tough transition.

“That sense of helpfulness gives them a real connection,” Link Crew Mentor Coordinator Mrs. Gabriella DiNatale-Park says.

Link Crew mentors have confirmed that the program seems to help and benefit their mentees. If the program’s success continues it is likely to have a bright future at HHS.

“Howell should definitely keep the Link Crew Mentoring program going in the future because it helps build trust between the older and younger students and creates friendships that probably would never have happened,” senior Grant VanMullekom, a Link Crew mentor, says.

When the freshmen got their first visit, mentors noted that there were many reluctant to participate. As time went on the freshmen seemed to warm up to the mentors, who feel they have accepted that it is a great opportunity to have an upperclassman help them out with their schooling and other issues that may occur in their lives.

“At first I don’t think the freshmen wanted us mentors there, but now I feel like they see that we are there to help them out and support them throughout the year,” VanMullekom says.

The Mentoring Program of Howell High School has improved each year. Now that the high school sees just how helpful this program can be to new students of the school, there is no limit to what the Link Crew Mentors program can do.

“The only thing left for me to do as a coordinator of the mentoring program is to make it bigger and bigger each year and keep making it the best it can possibly be,” says Link Crew Mentor Coordinator Gabriella DiNatalie-Park.

The Mentoring Leaders and Coordinators hope to bring more fabulous experiences into the lives of both mentors and mentees. They believe the program is an outstanding and a proud addition to Howell High School.

“I’m sure that Mentoring will bring a lot of good to these freshman and I’m excited to see their progress. I know it’s already benefited mentors like me,” says VanMullekom.