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The University of New Mexico's new mentoring institute will help boost training and mentoring research, school officials say.

UNM has 16 mentoring services around campus, along with 59 semiformal mentoring programs, which means they are not formalized but are happening through advisement coaching and tutoring.

The institute was developed to share those resources and collaborate, said Nora Dominguez, director of UNM Mentoring Institute.

Students will be mentored for personal and academic issues. They will also receive help in dealing with transferring from a community college to a university.

Jennifer Gomez-Chavez, director of Title 5, which helps improve campus conditions for Hispanic students, said the mentoring institute will benefit the school and New Mexico as a whole.

"Statewide, UNM can become the leader of offering research and training to rural communities that want to begin mentoring," she said. "Making mentoring a priority on campus is important to the way we set the tone as well as helping our whole state empower students and communities in their roles as mentors."

UNM received $130,000 from the Legislature for a mentoring institution. Its offices were set up Nov. 1 at 608 Buena Vista Drive S.E.

Dominguez said the institute has four goals: create partnerships within the university and New Mexico Community; connect all university assets and mentoring programs; research mentoring practices; and create a national conference in mentoring.

UNM is also working with Central New Mexico Community College and Big Brothers Big Sisters to establish relationships and to advise one another on mentoring.

Phillip Bustos, vice president for student services at CNM, said the mentorship institute helps both academic institutions.

"One of the main ways it will help us is with our collaborative efforts we currently have," he said. "If we can establish a relationship where there may be a mentor that will be waiting for a transfer students who can actually mentor them through the process, that will be excellent."

He said CNM provides provides 56 percent of UNM's transfers every year.

The simpler we can make the transition for our students, the better it is for both institutions, he said.

Gomez-Chavez said tenure faculty can mentor students and other faculty, and students can mentor students.

Dominguez said ultimately mentoring is good for everyone on campus, which is why the university is putting such a heavy emphasis on it.

"Mentoring approaches has proved to be effective in the corporate world and academic life to retain people in the organization - to increase the retention rates and graduation rates at the university," she said.