This online Research Summit from February 2017 focused on the topic of mentoring and peer relationships among students with and without intellectual disabilities. The presenters were Cindi May, Ph.D., from College of Charleston and Brian Freedman, Ph.D. & Laura Eisenman, Ph.D. from University of Delaware.
College programs for students with intellectual disability frequently engage peer mentors to promote students' social connections on campus. The qualitative study discussed in this article was conducted to explore, from mentors' perspectives, how mentor/mentee relationships developed, how mentors offered supports, and how mentors facilitated membership into the campus community. Using Pawson's (2004) conceptual framework, mentoring relationships were analyzed in regard to status, reference group, and mentoring mechanisms.
Peer mentoring is a well-established tool for supporting college students, and it often yields strong benefits (Budge, 2006; Colvin & Ashman, 2010). Much of the research to date has examined characteristics of mentors or mechanisms to support mentees. Little of that research focuses on the use of peer mentoring for college students with intellectual disabilities (ID).
This checklist developed by a Disability Services office on a college campus provides questions that families and students should address when trying to decide on a college program for students with intellectual disabilities. Covers such areas as type of campus, residential options, accommodations, campus allies, funding options, and provides other questions to ask when contacting programs you may be interested in.
