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This year, �ؾ��� students and their mentors logged thousands of hours of Zoom meetings, phone calls and text messages to prepare for life after graduation.

Through all the hardships, the 2021 Mentor and Mentee of the Year cheered their matches on and pushed each other to the next level.

2021 MENTEE OF THE YEAR

Akilah Smith, MA Clinical Psychology Counseling, ’23

Kayla Brown said that she nominated her mentee, Akilah Smith, “because this young lady has the drive and the motivation to push through whatever comes her way.”

Smith is also raising her son while working through the challenges of starting graduate school. “My mentee pushes me to be better because she is working hard to create a better tomorrow for herself and her family,” Brown said.

Smith joined the program to find a mentor who could help her wrangle her procrastination and stay focused through the pandemic. “This is my first year of grad school, and I knew it would be difficult,” she said. “I wanted to develop a relationship with somebody outside of the friends I have.”

Brown earned her allied health degree from Robert Morris and is a co-kindergarten teacher with Chicago Public Schools. Over the months, he helped her mentee get organized with a planner and a giant wall calendar of deadlines.

Brown nominated Smith because their relationship has grown deeper than work and school.

“I appreciate the transparency of our relationship,” Brown said. “I love how we can be professional and then how we can have days where we talk on a personal level.”

Smith hopes to open her own clinical psychology practice after graduation, is passionate about helping children from her community and works for a nonprofit after-school program.

Next year, Smith says she hopes to continue to stay connected with her mentor.

Get matched with your own professional mentor or mentee.

2021 MENTOR OF THE YEAR

Dina Mutawi, MA Human Resource Management, ’18

Dina Mutawi signed up for the Professional Mentoring Program after her own unforgettable experience with her mentor. As she wound her way to her current position as a human resources business partner, she had relied on her mentor for guidance, and Mutawi wanted to be that person for another Laker.

The program matched her with human resource management major Gabriela Racines, an undergraduate hoping to get a foothold in the industry.

“It’s been an honor and a privilege to be able to connect with someone and make an impact on their life,” Mutawi said. “I’m looking forward to continuing to grow our relationship — not only as a mentor and mentee, but as friends.”

Before her mentorship started, Racines said she “knew where I wanted to be, but I didn’t know how I was going to get there.”

With the encouragement of her mentor, Racines found a human resources internship this spring. Mutawi helped her mentor practice for interviews and feel confident starting her new role.

This May, Racines will graduate with the experience and the network to successfully launch her HR career.

“I didn’t think my mentor would help me as much as she has or care so much about seeing me accomplish my goals,” Racines said. “I don’t think I could have done it without Dina’s guidance and support.”

Racines hopes she can one day pay it forward and become a mentor to another future HR leader.

Mutawi is also helping to lead the new , a networking group for recent University graduates.

PROFESSIONAL MENTORING PROGRAM

When you build connections, connections build you—it’s that simple. Mentoring gives you an opportunity to learn and grow from a valuable partnership with an experienced professional. Take the initiative today to prepare for your tomorrow. Apply today.