CARA’s work across CUNY is made possible by dedicated campus partners who champion peer leadership every day. One of those leaders is Julissa Russo, Peer Advisor Coordinator at a LaGuardia Community College (LAGCC), helping structure how students support one another on campus.
As a LAGCC graduate and former peer mentor, Julissa Russo has spent more than a decade shaping how students support one another on campus. She began as a Student Success Mentor in 2014 and is now overseeing LaGuardia’s Peer Advisor Academy while completing her graduate studies. “I started as a mentor myself, so I know how important it is for students to have someone who understands what they’re going through.”
Like many campuses, LaGuardia is rebuilding its systems after the pandemic. “Things changed a lot – new tools, new ways of advising, and it’s been challenging to engage students. Peers sometimes have no-shows or go a long time without appointments.” This has made CARA’s partnership especially timely.
Julissa coordinates and trains up to 30 peer advisors each semester. These peers meet with students within their academic departments and help with study skills, time management, registration, and transfer planning.
One of the most valuable takeaways for Julissa and her team this semester has been CARA’s training. “The mentors feel a lot more comfortable with the transfer process now – they were getting so many questions.” She also noted the “making informed decisions” professional development training has been another strong addition.
Just as important has been the shift to using benchmarks to guide peer outreach. “Connecting benchmarks to communication has been really helpful. It gives peers a clear idea of what to focus on and when.”
What keeps Julissa motivated is watching peer advisors grow into confident leaders. “By helping the peer advisors, I’m helping multiple students at once. They learn how to support others, but also how to support themselves. That’s really meaningful to see.”
With partners like Julissa, CARA is proud to help strengthen LaGuardia’s peer-to-peer foundation so students can succeed from their first semester through graduation.