Peer-To-Peer Mentoring: Project ExCEL’s Peer Mentoring Program strives to increase, encourage, and support the inclusion and educational success of under-represented groups and interested students–black males in particular–through outreach, mentorship, and guidance.

To help freshmen and sophomores make successful academic and social transitions to Queens College, they are matched with academically high achieving upper-class students. Mentors serve as role models and advocates, assisting incoming and continuing students with academic, social, and personal concerns. Mentors establish supportive relationships with mentees by providing appropriate resource information and referrals. Simultaneously, mentors maintain and demonstrate high academic achievement and participation on campus. Both mentors and mentees are provided with support systems based on a one-on-one, interactive relationship.

Academic and Professional Development:​ One of Project ExCEL’s major goals is to increase student success and retention through academic and professional development workshops and events. Emphasis is placed on promoting academic achievement, increasing support through campus relationships, and encouraging individual growth at Queens College. Project ExCEL takes a collaborative approach to bringing together faculty, staff and administrators from offices and programs to foster students’ success. It is our goal that a synergy of resources and campus-wide activities will cultivate achievement that permeates beyond each participant’s college life and into his/her career and future studies. 

Programming to enhance the out-of-class experience includes:

• ​Career services, honors and scholarships, and academic skills workshops.
• Grant opportunities to attend local and national academic and professional development forums. These monies can be used to help defray education-related expenses for conferences or summer enrichment programs.
• Applications can be downloaded and submitted to the Academic Advising Center in Kiely Hall, Room 217.

Academic Services: Project ExCEL offers participants one-on-one academic advising sessions throughout their academic careers at Queens College. Participants will have the opportunity to develop strong and informative relationships with trained Academic Advising Center staff members who will help them better manage their academic interests and responsibilities. Students will receive structured advice and tools to help them maneuver through college and plan for their future.

All programs and activities of the CUNY Black Male Initiative Program are open to all academically eligible students, faculty and staff, without regard to race, gender, national origin or other characteristic.