Sonder

Peer Mentorship Program Creates Community for Art Students

Por UNC Asheville

21 de April de 2023

UNC Asheville students have multiple ways to take advantage of mentorship opportunities from the moment they arrive on campus to the day they graduate. Whether it’s in peer mentorship programs like IGNITE to connecting with alumni during the Career Center’s Alumni Mentor Week, many programs help make their transition to college easier.

For students in the Art & Art History Department, the Sonder Program fosters connections between upperclassmen and underclassmen in the department. Mentors speak to first-year/first-level courses, help plan departmental events, and serve as points of contact for new students.

“It became increasingly evident to me that our department had the unique opportunity to build the program in other ways than just with physical space,” said Tamie Beldue, chair of and professor with the Art & Art History Department, who named the program “Sonder” for the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own. “I was introduced to the word ‘sonder’ at a professional conference and realized this would be an amazing name for a peer-mentorship program centered around empathy.”

Creating Community

Since the program officially launched during the Fall 2022 semester, six students have been selected to serve as mentors and have helped coordinate three major events for the department to build community and camaraderie.

The first one was a first birthday party for Owen Hall, which had reopened after renovations in 2021. They had games, food, and other fun activities for students.

“I saw many students from painting, drawing, ceramics, and all concentrations together, joining to celebrate the very building we work in,” said Angel Xelhua ‘25, one of the program’s mentors. “It was at this event that I truly realized the impact our program has on our amazing art community.”

Earlier this semester, they had a “camp-in” that allowed students to enjoy s’mores, a camping area with blankets, and a star projector, while having access to Owen Hall’s studio spaces for “a festive evening of homework,” according to Beldue.

The final event on the program’s schedule for this year will be a Family Reunion that will invite department alumni back to campus in concert with their student scholarship and alumni dinner and the student art & ceramics sale scheduled for April 21-22.

Words of Wisdom

Students participating in the first year of the program have gotten a lot out of the experience of being a mentor.

Hannah Durham ‘23 says that serving as a mentor has helped her gain a greater sense of community within the department.

Both Durham and Xelhua are upperclassmen and had advice for students interested in the art program. “Get involved!” says Durham. “There are so many awesome opportunities from Sonder events to open model sessions to ceramic parties, etc.”

Xelhua says “some moments may seem arduous and difficult, but your willingness to move forward and grow will define your successes. This program is like no other, and I can guarantee you will come out an amazing artist.”

As the program moves toward its second full year, Beldue hopes it can grow to become fully led by student mentors.

“Ideally, the program will be able to transition to that next year which should continue generating interest and provide additional opportunities, such as a student exhibition, and for smaller informal events to be organized in addition to the three large events,” she said. “The smaller events will be organized to specifically target those students who might want to go to a gallery exhibit but not have anyone to go with, or museum outings, hikes, etc.”

Current art and art history students interested in the program can reach out to Tamie Beldue, Suzie Dittenber, or Brett Skidmore. To learn more about the Art & Art History Department, click here.