The idea of The Mentor was born spontaneously during an unprecedented moment of introspection and group consciousness. To the best of my knowledge, the aspirational needs which characterized the creation of the Department of Psychology at Fayetteville State University also provided the needed impetus for the founding of this Journal. Needless to say that the compelling motive was to contribute constructive service to the academic and professional community of which we are members and with which we share common interests and aspirations. I felt honored and personally gratified to be offered the opportunity to serve as The Mentor=s first editor. I owe much gratitude to my colleagues in the Department, especially Dr. Maxwell Twum with whom I shared the initial fantasy and who bought the idea of a journal without equivocation. In fact, the whole idea about The Mentor would have been fruitless without the dynamic and enthusiastic leadership of Dr. Doreen Hilton, Chair, The Department of Psychology. She was the primary catalyst. She rightly regarded The Mentor as her baby and as one of the important challenges of the Department of Psychology . I remain grateful to her for her keeping the dream alive.

It would have been extremely difficult to carry out this project without the support and approval of the Administration of the College of Arts and Sciences of Fayetteville State University. To this effect, on behalf of the Editorial Board of The Mentor: Journal of Mentoring and Field Experience, I sincerely thank Dr. Bertha Miller, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, for giving us the green light and making sure that we remain focused on the project and that the Board and Department fulfill the set objectives. The greatest mentor of The Mentor,

namely, Dr. Jon Young, Associate Dean, College of Arts and Sciences & Director, University College, is the apparent lifeblood of the Editorial Board. Despite his crowded schedule Dr. Young attended all Editorial Board meetings. His commitment, resourcefulness, expertise, advice and guidance were important factors attributable to the success of the Mentor. Thank you Dr. Young.

The entire members of the Editorial Board deserve credits for their contributions. Special thanks go to Dr. Dorothy Holmes, Director, Special Programs & Student Suppot Services, Fayetteville State University, for contributing important resources and ideas to this project. The Editorial Board will always be proud of Dr. Wynton Hadley, Assistant Dean, School of Education, FSU for her spontaneity in response to issues of vital importance to the Mentor. Due thanks go to Dr. Ngozi Kamalu for his role as the secretary to all Board meetings. He is greatly appreciated. The same regard goes to Dr. Jilly Ngwainmbi. On a serious note, I like to thank all the at-large editors. We shall continue to count on them in the future volumes of the Journal.

Finally, the pivotal role played by Mr. Karel Cummings, Supervisor of the Fayetteville State University Print Shop should be mentioned. Without Mr. Cummings= professional and sundry assistance, it would not have been possible to produce and publish The Mentor. We are most grateful to the entire staff of the print shop, especially Mr. Daren ... and Ms. ... for putting a professional touch to the publication of this Journal. Motivated by the success of this first volume of the Mentor, we have already started working on the second volume. We must keep the dream of the Mentor alive.

Summary of 2001 Articles

This first issue of The Mentor, corresponding with the first year of the millenium, is symbolic of a happy beginning. The theme of mentoring is fundamental to all the scholarly work in this volume. In retrospect, this journal issue has much to offer to the readership.

Haight, Rhodes, and Nicholson discuss cross-race mentoring and the problems associated with matching mentors and mentees across racial lines. Their article underscores the need to

mobilize support for cross-race mentors and mentoring.

Hadley, Dickens, and Brown=s article discusses the importance of pre-college mentoring. These authors recognize that some existing mentoring activities are somewhat unconventional rather than traditional. They recognize a systematized mentoring program, which extends services to pre-college students, as having the potential to impact both the students= academic and personal success.

Fenyo and Petulante express concerns about the grading system that exists in most academic evaluations. They propose an alternative method of grading and suggest that such a method would improve academic performance. Moreover, their new perspective contribute to improvement in retention rates, as well as create a more conducive learning atmosphere.

Hatter presents an Afrocentric orientation in mentoring. There is support for her postulation that an optimal Afrocentric world view is associated with emotional well being for both European American and African American college students. The author discusses the findings in her study in light of their implications for mentoring college students.

Finally, Ike and Hilton discuss the disparity in the conceptual frameworks for understanding mentoring. Their article articulates four broad dimensions of mentoring and emphasizes the importance of including field experience and self-reports of mentored college students in assessing the efficacy of college mentoring.