Dr. Kevin W. Muchiri, PMP, CCSP – Founder
While serving as a student representative to the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV), I remember coming back to report to President Broderick that the Academic Advising situation around the colleges and universities in the state of Virginia was in dire need of more student advisors and academic support, and our campus was no exception. President Broderick followed up by inviting me to meet with the then interim Director of SCHEV, Dr. Fogarty. From those conversations, I drafted ideas on what we needed to do as an institution to improve advising. Since then, we have continuously witnessed an improvement by having dedicated advisors, staff and student services throughout our campus to support our students through the student success center.
However, I noticed that the needs of the students were restricted to academic success, but their needs spanned far and wide. I took a keen interest on the plight of male college students, more specifically, those of African descent. One of the key factors that I noticed lacking, was the mentoring component and its significance to the life of a college student. Most of the students I’ve interacted with deal with adjustment issues, family issues, peer pressure, relationships, communication challenges, a lack of self-confidence, and academic intimidation, most of which I could relate to during my time as an undergraduate student.
As a PhD. Candidate and higher education professional, monitoring the growth of the over fifty students that I’ve mentored has allowed me the opportunity to witness interesting trends in student advancement and engagement. It dawned on me that a group of students who are organized and empowered have the potential and capability to change the world for the better. Additionally, my interest grew while volunteering with the ODU Engineering Dean’s Ambassadors. It became clear that mentoring students in the STEM-H field would be of great value to Old Dominion University.