Hudock Center Peer Hub connects mentors, students

Penn College’s peer mentors and fellow students have a new, dedicated space in which to connect – the Hudock Center Peer Hub. 

The hangout spot gives peer mentors a relaxed venue for conversing with other students and sharing their wisdom on many matters, including building study skills, navigating social situations and getting involved on campus – all ways to boost students’ success.

“Peer mentors are experienced students who serve as helpers to their fellow Wildcats,” explained Melissa M. Stocum, coordinator of peer mentoring. “Right now, we have seven peer mentors in diverse majors who have had different experiences on campus and who are available to talk with students to help them make connections on campus, connect with resources, or just to listen and offer some problem-solving advice. Some peer mentors have additional on-campus leadership experience, but it is not a requirement. Each peer mentor brings their own unique qualities and experiences to the position and each one seems to genuinely want to help out fellow students.”

The Peer Mentoring Program is a recent development in the Michael J. Hudock Sr. Center for Academic Excellence. It began as a pilot project with three peer mentors and included a survey of student needs and additional research. In Spring 2024, a larger team of peer mentors was hired, trained and began their work. They just needed their own setting.

“There wasn’t a private space where peer mentors could consistently meet with students, so they usually sat at the front desk or at the nearby computer stations,” Stocum explained. “As a solution to this problem, we decided to revamp what was formerly a storage closet into a unique space where the peer mentors could hang out, work on their projects and meet with students.”

With increased awareness of this new student resource, Stocum hopes to see increased traffic to the Hudock Center Peer Hub.

Coinciding with National Mentoring Month, a grand opening was held for the Hudock Center Peer Hub in late January. The event also celebrated the birthday of Poppy, director of goodvibes (yes, that last term is one word; the acronym spells “dog”).

“Poppy is the Hudock Center’s facility dog and, objectively, our most popular Hudock Center staff member,” Stocum said. “Poppy accompanies Dr. Tanya Berfield (director of student advocacy and Title IX coordinator) almost everywhere she goes. As facility dog, she can be of great comfort for students who may be having difficult conversations with Tanya, but largely, I would say her role on campus is to bring joy and to make students, faculty and staff smile.”

The grand opening reception also highlighted TalkCampus, a 24/7 online student peer support platform that allows students to share their feelings and find mental health support online from other students in their campus community as well as globally. TalkCampus is available for free to every Penn College student, and information and resources related to its use are located in the Hudock Center Peer Hub.

Students who want to speak with a peer mentor can drop by the Hudock Center during the following times: 9 to 11 a.m. and 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays; 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. Wednesdays; and 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Fridays.

Peer mentors also work in The Madigan Library on some evenings and occasional weekends. They have a designated table on the first floor of the library and a private room available on the second floor. Wildcats can stop by the library table 4:30 to 8 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays; 6:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesdays; and 2 to 6 p.m. Saturdays.

Students can book peer mentor appointments ahead of time by using the “book a meeting” link on the Peer Mentoring webpage or on the Hudock Center portal page (the latter link is only accessible to the college community).

Located on the first floor of the Davie Jane Gilmour Center, the Hudock Center is open 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. In addition to peer mentoring and student advocacy, the center offers students an array of services and resources to navigate the college experience, including tutoring, study skills, counseling, international support, and veteran and military services.