Middle School Mentor Program
Every middle school student belongs to a small Mentor Group led by a trusted faculty mentor who serves as an advocate, guide, and consistent point of connection throughout the school year. Mentor Groups create space for students to build relationships, develop leadership skills, strengthen executive functioning habits, and navigate the unique challenges and growth that come with adolescence.At OLL, we believe middle school students thrive when they are deeply known, intentionally supported, and meaningfully connected to their community. Our Mentor Groups and School Families programs are foundational to the OLL middle school experience and reflect our commitment to forming students academically, socially, emotionally, and spiritually.
Mentor Groups meet regularly to focus on community building, organization and study skills, faith formation, social-emotional learning, and student wellness. Students participate in meaningful conversations around character, belonging, empathy, responsibility, and identity while building strong peer relationships across grade levels. At OLL, we believe students learn best when they feel safe, connected, and valued.
Our Mentor Group system is intentionally integrated into our larger School Families program, creating authentic relationships between students from Preschool through 8th grade. Each middle school Mentor Group is paired with younger students to form a School Family that gathers throughout the year for buddy activities, prayer, service projects, celebrations, and school traditions.
These cross-grade connections are one of the most special parts of the OLL experience. Older students develop leadership, compassion, patience, and confidence as role models for younger Lakers, while younger students gain a sense of belonging, encouragement, and connection to the larger school community. It is common to see middle school students helping younger buddies at Mass, reading together, leading activities, or simply offering a friendly face in the hallway.
Our School Families program reinforces the values at the heart of Catholic education: community, service, mentorship, and human dignity. It transforms our campus into more than just a school. It creates a family-centered environment where students are known across grade levels and where relationships matter deeply.
At OLL, middle school is not just preparation for high school. It is a time for students to grow into confident leaders, compassionate mentors, thoughtful learners, and young people rooted in faith and purpose.
