T1L1 mentor Steve Nelson with Willow Hunter (left) and Gabrielle Austel (right). (Photo provided)
Posted By: The Reporter November 25, 2025
By KEVIN YANEY
For The Reporter
On Thursday, Nov. 20, 114 Hamilton Heights Middle School students graduated from the Teach One to Lead One (T1L1) mentoring program.
T1L1 is a leadership skills program that helps students find their purpose and reach their potential. It is led by caring community volunteers who serve as mentors to the students. The program centers around 10 Universal Principles needed to be an effective leader: respect, integrity, self-control, compassion, courage, teamwork, excellence, humility, enthusiasm, and honor.
Hamilton Heights students from three fifth-grade classes and three eighth-grade classes have met weekly with their mentors throughout the first semester. The graduation ceremony celebrated their completion of the program.
The fifth-grade students received T1L1 diplomas and a letter recognizing their community service work during the semester. (Photo provided)
The eighth-grade students received T1L1 diplomas and a letter recognizing their community service work during the semester. (Photo provided)
“Graduation day is full of energy,” T1L1 Central Indiana Program Coordinator Gabby Pinkston said. “The students celebrate together. They really connect with our mentors and you can see it in the way they interact with them.”
T1L1 has been mentoring students in Hamilton Heights since 2019. Hamilton Heights was the first school corporation in Indiana to host a T1L1 group. For more information on mentoring with the group, go to T1L1.org.
