The Voices of Mentees: Exploration of Holistic Critical Mentoring With the UMBC McNair Scholars

Abstract

Mentoring is a critical tool in enhancing graduate school acceptance, retention, and degree attainment. It provides scholars with the skills and support needed to achieve their educational and career goals. Formal mentoring programs have become essential for addressing disparities in higher education, particularly for historically excluded groups (HEG), such as first-generation college students, individuals from low-income households, and underrepresented racial and ethnic communities. The federally funded University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) McNair Scholars Program aims to create equitable academic pathways by supporting these populations through mentorship, research opportunities, and preparation for doctoral education. Despite its success, many McNair Scholars remain “the only” from their backgrounds in graduate programs, highlighting the need for mentoring frameworks that challenge systemic inequities and focus on institutional transformation.

UMBC McNair stands out with its unique holistic critical mentorship (HCM) approach, a network of power-dynamic-flipped, student-centered, reciprocal relationships. The HCM framework integrates principles from various other frameworks, such as Critical Race Theory (CRT), Community Cultural Wealth (CCW), and Afrocentric Feminist Epistemology. These frameworks emphasize the importance of addressing systemic barriers, valuing mentees’ lived experiences, and fostering reciprocal mentoring relationships. HCM’s eight guiding tenets include centering mentee voices, creating networks of support, and redefining professionalism to align with diverse cultural and lived experiences.

This study delves into how HCM is manifested in the UMBC McNair Mentoring model and its profound impact on scholars and their mentorships. Using a compilation of qualitative narrative methods, including Community‐based participatory research, counterstorytelling, and critical counter-narrative via semi-structured interviews and focus groups, this study gathered insights from 35 participants across UMBC’s McNair Scholars, Friends of McNair network, student staff, and alumni. The research prioritized decolonized methodologies to honor participants’ voices and ensure collaborative and ethical data collection.

Participants acknowledged the transformative effects of HCM, noting its alignment with McNair’s policies. Findings reveal that mentees appreciate holistic mentorship encompassing emotional, cultural, and academic support, yet they encounter challenges related to institutional expectations and balancing program demands with personal obstacles. Friends of McNair participants desired increased formal mentorship and research opportunities. The findings underscore the importance of mentoring frameworks that address systemic inequities, emphasizing lived experiences over traditional professional standards. Expanding support networks is vital for ensuring equitable access to resources. Despite external pressures, it remains essential to maintain focus on race and systemic inequities.

HCM offers a flexible mentoring framework that benefits all involved. By centering mentee voices and challenging established norms, mentorship programs can drive systemic change and promote holistic development, encouraging reflective & reflexive practices among mentors and conspiratorial collaborative efforts within institutions to confront and ultimately dismantle oppressive structures.