The Jame T. Reedy Sr. Scholarship: My Mentee Story

by Michael Dominguez

My post high school experience was very unique. Navigating this new journey of my life was already confusing and difficult, but was made more difficult by the COVID-19 pandemic. This brought many restrictions and obstacles, the most difficult being financial. Fortunately, my hard work during my academic career ensured my family wouldn’t have to worry much. I was fortunate enough to be awarded the James T. Reedy Sr. Scholarship. I was given a laptop which was a big upgrade from the late 2000s PC my family had been sharing for years up to that point. That laptop would go on to serve me through my whole collegiate career. Most importantly, being awarded this scholarship also offered me the opportunity to connect with a mentor through their mentorship program. Having been guided by my older sister who was in her junior year at Lehigh up to that point, I felt that having a mentor would be very beneficial in this confusing time for me. 

In the fall of 2020, I was connected with Charlene Fletcher, my appointed mentor by the program. Charlene is a Lehigh Alum and that immediately gave me the comfort that I sought.  Charlene has mentored me throughout my entire collegiate career. She has witnessed my growth from High School graduate in 2020, to now, as a Professional Software Developer. In the beginning, I was a shy and quiet kid who was struggling to figure out what I wanted to do at Lehigh. Charlene always made sure to check up on me and make sure I was heard and gave me very useful advice. She gave me the confidence to break out of my shell and encouraged me to continue pushing forward.

Michael with Lehigh Familia

Charlene was one of my motivators, and is why I pushed to get more involved in the Lehigh community, to want to learn more about Computer Science, and to want to be a programmer. As I began to mature and grow out of the shyness and quietness, Charlene was always there to cheer me on and let me know how well I was doing. Her mentoring style of being both professional and personable at the same time has inspired me a lot; to the point where I have taken on a mentoring role myself at Lehigh. During my junior and senior years at Lehigh, I would take it upon myself to mentor and provide guidance to the younger Computer Science students. I followed behind Charlene’s style of mentoring, keeping it professional while also befriending my mentees. 

I cannot describe in words the effect that the J. T. Reedy Mentor Program and Charlene has had on my career. I would not be so passionate nor open to speaking about my experiences, mentoring others or even open to speaking to strangers if it wasn’t for the guidance, mentorship and overall connection I made with Charlene. This experience has inspired me to continue to voluntarily mentor with the student organization I joined at Lehigh called the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), as well as their professional chapter in Philadelphia. I am so grateful for the opportunity the James T. Reedy Sr. Scholarship has given me with my mentor partnership. I hope to one day become a mentor myself and continue to help support the growth of Reading High School students!

Michael Dominguez

James T. Reedy Sr. Scholarship Fund Awardee and Lehigh University Graduate 2024