As is common in life, things do not always go according to plan. This was the case during my Mentor Philosophy class. My mentee was busy with work, school and many extracurricular activities that we did not get the opportunity to meet in person. This was a great opportunity to develop a professional relationship through other means, but I could not help but to feel that I was deprived the experience.

Around that time I continued to participate in student organizations and before long I had developed a mentor-mentee relationship with other students outside the program. One particular club was predominately for Latino and Hispanic students. Being a few semesters ahead I was able to answer questions and offer any advice I could. I noticed, however, that some individuals had all the qualities of an Honors student. The doubts and insecurities they shared were similar to the ones I had when I first joined, but I continued to offer encouragement the best I could. A few months later, I was thrilled to find out that they had decided to join.

Although many of the students I had met were perfect candidates for the program, few were aware of its existence. Perhaps worse, fewer were confident enough in their abilities. I knew something had to be done. Fortunately, I was not the only one with this idea, as the program director at the time---as well as my mentor---approached a group of us domestic students of color and the Equity Ambassadors group was born. I address this in more detail in the Global Citizenship tab, but I mention it here to highlight the how interconnected the Honors competencies are. My mentoring others helped make me aware of our need for more domestic diversity. But it was thanks to the help and advice of my own mentor that I gained the confidence to demonstrate my leadership on such an issue. Something which, of course, can only be accomplished with the help and support of others.