This past May, Chicago Bank of America WITS (Working in the Schools) mentors celebrated the end of an amazing year of Mid-Day Mentoring at Walsh Elementary School.
Each elementary student who participated in this program received a WITS tote bag with four books through the WITS Summer Books program. Bank of America mentors were delighted to work with the same students for a second year in a row, which made it hard to say goodbye as the students moved on to the fifth grade. The mentors accommodated a significant increase in the Walsh student population due to migrant families housed by the City of Chicago within the Walsh enrollment area. WITS gives a special thank you to Bank of America’s bi-lingual mentors who worked with migrant students who spoke little or no English and some who were not yet reading.
Bank of America mentors found that their students enjoyed reading titles such as Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Dog Man, Weird but True, and books about dinosaurs. Before the reading began, student-mentor pairs would take part in warm-up activities. This group in particular loved to complete Rebus puzzles.
When asked their favorite thing about WITS, students said they enjoyed the warm-up activities and spending time with their mentors. One student stated, “My favorite thing about WITS is the challenging puzzles and learning new words while reading with my wonderful mentors.” Another student said her favorite part of WITS is “learning about my mentors and reading with them.”
In the 2023-2024 school year, 28 Bank of America mentors collectively logged more than 250 hours of mentoring time with students. Bank of America mentors come from many departments and are bused from two office locations to Walsh Elementary each week.
WITS requires a significant commitment from each mentor for the entire school year and supports mentors with training. This training allows mentors to build meaningful relationships with their student over the course of the year while working to improve their reading skills, which are the foundation for academic success.
Bank of America has a long-standing relationship with WITS, providing financial support and mentors. Many of the Bank of America mentors continue with the program for several years. At WITS program, Program Coordinators create WITS newsletters throughout the school year for students and mentors to take home, highlighting different program activities, events, and student-mentor pairs. You can read more about Walsh and Bank of America and see program newsletters in our 2023-24 school year recap.
At WITS, we pride ourselves on maintaining meaningful connections with our program partners such as Bank of America. If you are interested in supporting WITS as a partner, mentor, or in any capacity, you can learn more on our Volunteer and Support pages.
