Andrea Aranda | Staff Reporter

The Latino American Mentorship Program (LAMP) is a program that motivates Hispanic students to not only graduate from college but to further their careers by developing life lesson skills.

LAMP has an activity that compliments mental health. They run two miles every Wednesday at 6 a.m. They meet up in front of the One Stop Shop. Each mile represents a semester.

“We run two miles because we want it to represent the first mile is the first half of the semester and the second mile is the second half of the semester,” Fred Fuentes, coordinator of LAMP, said.

After the run, the students gather up in a circle and talk about their issues. They want others to know that there are people willing to hear them out and help them. The running addresses the physical, mental, and the academic side.

“They are doing better academically because they feel like somebody cares about them,” Fuentes said. “If someone cares about them and doing better, they are going to be here next semester.”

The running is for them to think about themselves and others. There are resources that students can go for help. On Wednesday evenings, they have meetings. During those meeting LAMP brings UPD to talk to the young men. They also have the Counseling Center talk to them.

The running activity was implemented over the summer and is going for 16 weeks, the length of a semester. There is an average of 20 people attending the run, both male and female students.