The SFA Alumni Association unveiled its newest program, The Mentor Ring, during Homecoming 2001 festivities.The Mentor Ring is a unique program designed to connect students with successful alumni in mentor-type relationships. Its expands the concept of individual attention that has long been a rich part of SFA's history.The Mentor Ring committee, consisting of SFA students, university and alumni representatives, spent three days last Spring reviewing results of a campus survey and SFA history to craft the ring design.

***********
Learn the history behind the Mentor Ring. (File is a PDF document.)
************The features of the Mentor Ring highlight the traditions of SFA more so than any other ring in the history of campus. It tells the story of what SFA is really about.

The Mentor Ring is available in two main styles--the Graduate or the Friend--for both men and women. (See the images above.) The Graduate style contains the degree and graduation date, and the Friend style includes alternate emblems in place of the degree and graduation year. The Friend version was designed for those who didn't receive a degree from SFA but are loyal friends and supporters of the university who have expressed an interest in participating in the Mentor Ring program.

Ordering the Mentor Ring
To place an order for the Mentor Ring, please call Balfour at 1-866-225-3687, use reference code 2846. Be sure to take down the name of your Balfour customer service representative when you place your order.Click here for the Mentor Ring Order form. See the brochure: Page 1 and Page 2. (Files are individual PDF documents.) If you plan to be on the SFA campus soon, ring orders can also be placed at the UC Bookstore. Balfour representatives also make campus trips several times during the semester to take ring orders. Chances are, a rep may be in town when you are!STUDENTS: Use this form to request your Mentor assignment. (File is a PDF document.)

Mentor Program Overview
When a student reaches 60 credit hours or junior status, he/she is eligible to purchase the Mentor Ring. Students will be connected (if they choose) with an alumnus mentor who will offer career advice and recommendations throughout the students' remaining semesters at SFA to help provide a transition from college to the professional world.Correspondence between the students and alumnus mentor is not mandatory, but it is encouraged.About 200 mentor-student assignments have been connected. The pool of mentors includes alumni, scholarship donors, present and former members of the SFA Board of Regents, faculty members, Chapter leaders and Alumni Association board members. As the Mentor Ring program grows, the pool of mentors hopefully will include those who purchased the Mentor Ring as a student.

The Mentor Ring program is a cooperative effort of the UC Bookstore, Balfour, the Student Foundation Association and the SFA Alumni Association. The actual cost of the Mentor Ring is an average of $100 less than a comparable ring, but the program is based on more than the bottom line . . . it is about connecting the past with the future.

Want to be a Mentor Ring Mentor?
Click for the Mentor Ring Mentor Application. Just complete the application and return it to the SFA Alumni Association. (File is a PDF document.)

What do I have to do as a Mentor?
Participation as a mentor can be as little or as much as you desire. Click for the Mentor Ring Mentor Application. Just complete the application and return it to the SFA Alumni Association. (File is a PDF document.)

• Personally contact my student(s) either by e-mail, letters, handwritten notes or
  phone at my own time and expense throughout your student?s/students? junior and
  senior years at SFA.Provide—in a reasonable amount of time—tips on resume writing, networking,
  interviewing, and other related effective business practices should your student(s)
  request it. The SFA Alumni Association will provide materials to use as a
  guide in this process.Encourage students to become active in the SFA Alumni Association and to participate in the Mentor Ring program as a Mentor upon graduation.
• Foster a climate of pride and support for current and future students, the university and the SFA Alumni Association.

Typical correspondence may be scheduled as follows:

• Congratulate the students for purchasing the Mentor Ring and joining the program. (Sent during the junior year.)Encourage the students to begin work on resumes, start a placement file on campus. (Sent about mid-semester of the junior year.)Encourage the students to start targeting the geographical areas in which they would like to work after graduation; participate in internships between junior and senior year. (Sent toward end of junior year.)
• Congratulate the students for entering their senior year; remind them of graduation deadlines; provide information including job interview tips and possible job leads; encourage membership in the SFA Alumni Association and to continue involvement in the Mentor Ring program as a Mentor.
  

To furnish the means of acquiring knowledge is "the greatest benefit that can be conferred upon mankind." - John Quincy Adams

The SFA Alumni Association realizes the potential for this program is great, and we're hoping all participants understand and appreciate the value that comes from helping fellow Lumberjacks. Great rewards can result for both Mentors and students.