By William Croyle
Enquirer contributor

LUDLOW - A buzz filled Vickie Baker's second-grade class at Ludlow Elementary School when Ludlow High School senior Chris Wright walked in the room.

"Is Chris going to come over to my table?" shouted one child as Wright helped others with math.

Wright is one of 31 juniors and seniors in the first year of the school's mentoring program. The 12 boys and 19 girls spend an hour daily in an elementary classroom helping kids with things such as reading, writing, tying shoes or personal problems.

"As soon as I come in, it's 'Jordan! Jordan! Jordan!' " said junior Jordan Logan, who helps preschoolers put straws in their milk cartons or play with blocks. "It makes me feel good that I'm making an impact on their lives."

The mentors are graded, based on criteria including professionalism, promptness and weekly evaluations from the elementary teachers. Special education teacher Beth Ketzer and high school principal Mike Borchers started the program, which has exceeded his expectations - especially with the boys who become mentors.

"I knew the girls would do well and I thought the boys would say, 'Let's see how this works,'" said Borchers. "But the boys have done very well, and I attribute that to the background of the kids they are helping."

Many of the kids come from single-parent homes and don't have male role models. In Nicole Bielawa's special education class, some disliked going to school until junior Dustin Littrell arrived.

"A lot of these kids don't have dads in the house and really look up to Dustin," Bielawa said.

Teacher and football coach Steve Hensley monitors the program. The mentors submit weekly essays about their experiences.

"I anticipated more of a journal that said, 'Here's what I did and how I did it,' " said Hensley. "But they've turned out to be more reflective, with a lot of personal thoughts and feelings."

According to the National Education Association, only 9 percent of elementary teachers across the country are men. At Ludlow elementary, there are three male instructors out of 36.

"You traditionally don't find males who want to be teachers," said Ludlow elementary principal Jay Brewer. "This is the kind of program that could change that."

Wright said that after one of his football games this season, he met the mother of one of the boys he mentors. She told Wright what a positive influence he was on her son.

"It felt great. It was wonderful, because I wasn't sure at that point what kind of impact I was having," said Wright. "At the beginning of this year I wanted to go into communications in college. Now I'm thinking about teaching."