Peer Leadership Program

The Peer Leadership is a school educational program that looks upon upperclassmen to help ease the transition to the underclassman's respective freshmen year, usually run in public Universities and high schools. The Peer Program is considered to stress communal interaction and social insight. Before meeting with smaller groups of newcomers the larger Peer Leader is trained to deal and mentor with the educational needs the newcomers may express.

The methodology most commonly used in training the members of Peer is known as the Five Stages Approach, which teaches Peer Leaders about the five stages of a group. It is important to note that this is the interpretation of the journey, per se, that many peer groups embark upon. The stages are:

Stage One: Forming, which understands that upon first creating groups, the members will be nervous. This stage remains crucial for leaders to emerge.

Stage Two: Norming, following forming, is the stage in which group members begin to adjust to their new, institutionalized atmosphere. The Peer members themselves begin to initiate general conversation and, within time, to manifest state-sponsored curriculum upon their members.

Stage Three: Storming, the stage in which the freshmen begin to fight for roles in the group. Often conflict erupts emotionally as true feelings are expressed and group members learn about how others perceive them.

Stage Four: Performing, the point in which the group members have the capacity to feel comfortable with each other. Unlike the stage preceding it, many of the emotions felt on this level are of trust and kindness, although apathy and disinterest may also peak in certain members during this stage.

Stage Five: Mourning and Reform, the final stage which involves a parting of ways as group members review and reflect on the past. At the same time, they also focused on their future lives and ways that they will impart their differences upon the world. The Peer Leader must stress that it is the responsibility of the individual group members to act responsibly and morally in their future endeavors, taking care to especially stress the value of autonomy and self-direction.

Peer leaders often have various ways of recognizing each other as well as expressing the Peer bond and emotional trust between Peer leaders. There are many levels on which Peer recognition functions, starting from the most basic and common form to the most complex form:

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