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Since 1965, St. Olaf College has maintained a partnership with Project Friendship — a nonprofit organization dedicated to facilitating meaningful connections between Northfield youth and student mentors attending St. Olaf College or Carleton College.

As part of St. Olaf’s commitment to connecting students to the community, Project Friendship has been a long-standing outlet for student volunteering — with this year marking the 60th anniversary of the partnership. 

“I know that as a mentor, I can have a big effect on my mentee, but what I didn’t know when I originally started with Project Friendship is how it would change my college experience,” student mentor Kyla Elsbury ’27 says. “There is one thing that I know about Project Friendship, and it is that you can change a child’s life for the better, and they’ll likely change yours too.”

On the leadership board of Project Friendship there are several St. Olaf student representatives, bridging the gap between the organization and St. Olaf in order to better assist in recruiting mentor volunteers. Student Program Lead  Maddie Pralle ’26 encourages students to get involved with Project Friendship to continue a healthy partnership between St. Olaf and the greater community of Northfield. 

“It’s a great way to directly be involved in the community, learn how to be a mentor, and work with youth,” Pralle says. 

Beyond being a volunteer opportunity, St. Olaf also supports the missions of Project Friendship through particular Academic Civic Engagement courses offered for students, with coursework culminating in substantial projects that will help the organization. Academic Civic Engagement Program Director Alyssa Melby lists particular contributions St. Olaf ACE courses have made to Project Friendship, citing both a graphic design course where students crafted marketing materials for the organization and a computer science course where students designed an app to better connect mentees with student mentors. 

“We see students getting an opportunity to really become a part of this community in a meaningful way, and have a tie to this community that can last not only the four years they’re here, but long beyond that as well,” Melby says. 

Project Friendship serves as an asset to the Northfield Promise, a community movement that establishes benchmarks of child development from cradle to career, by aiding youth in establishing meaningful relationships outside of their immediate families — considered an essential part of development. Melby says that student mentors therefore serve a greater purpose than just being a friend to a child, as they assist the larger goals of the Northfield community.

“I think that it’s always important to consider the ways in which we’re helping to support their work,” Mellby says. “For many years Project Friendship has provided so many meaningful opportunities for our students, so it’s important to think about not only the individual relationships that are being built with every mentor-mentee match, but about the institutional relationships between St. Olaf and Project Friendship, and how can we continue to deepen those over time.” 

Oles, were you a mentor for Project Friendship during your time on the Hill? Reach out to Executive Director Holly Schoenbauer at holly@projectfriendshipmentoring.org to be a part of the Project Friendship alumni database.