Mentoring Makes Me So HapPy!

The little boy silently handed Jyotsna Jayaram the card he had made for her. Jyotsna, who had been the AOK mentor/tutor for the third grade class since the beginning of the school year, happily accepted the gift from the quiet child. It was a drawing of a koala bear, her favorite animal. She had mentioned koalas briefly for a math problem when working with the students. The little boy had remembered. That was the moment she began to understand the impact she had on students in her class. 

Last year, Jyotsna, a recent Biological Studies graduate, was working as a lab researcher. Growing up, she had many mentors who helped her; she had always wanted to become one herself to give back to the community that had supported her. She found AOK Mentoring & Tutoring, quickly enrolled as a volunteer, and began her assignment as classroom mentoring/tutoring support in October of last year. 

“There’s something about how kids look at you that can be intimidating,” she said of her first, nervous day at Elkridge Elementary. Soon, she began to see the students thriving in reaction to her confidence boosting encouragement. Children blossom with a little patience and understanding, and she loved seeing kids’ faces light up when solving a problem they had struggled with. Jyotsna worked with one boy who could not tell time by breaking down the elements, and slowly teaching him step by step how to read a clock. He got it. “He was so happy with a huge smile! And that made me happy!” 
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Jyotsna is currently attending Johns Hopkins University to pursue a Master’s Degree. She will also be returning to volunteer as an AOK mentor/tutor. “I am so glad AOK has this program! With larger class sizes, children need another encouraging presence in the classroom.” Jyotsna is happy to be that presence. 

​Written by Karol Olson, AOK Board Vice President