Jenkins, Westchester deputy county executive; Robi Schlaff, director of the Westchester
County Office for Women. Photo by Margaret Fox Photography.
Jolene Barrett and Ayda Tuku.
Mentors from the Her Honor 2018-19 season
Burnett, Caitlyn Acevedo, Stephanie Martin, Janiah Ford, Alisia Reyes, Emily Mendez, Amberstorm
Hopwood, Alesandra Martin and Karisma Patrick.
For the past 12 years, Judge Judy Sheindlin and her step-daughter Nicole Sheindlin have been bringing Her Honor Mentoring to Westchester County.
Funded by Judge Sheindlin, the presiding judge on the number-one daytime syndicated television program “Judge Judy,” and developed by her daughter Nicole Sheindlin, Her Honor Mentoring is administered by the Westchester County Office for Women in partnership with the Eileen Fisher Community Foundation.
The mission of Her Honor Mentoring provides a platform for young women to reach their full potential, and practical skills to realize a life full of promise, attained through a structured framework for learning and growth.
The program reinforces the importance of a college education and, ultimately, a meaningful profession, and has touched the lives of hundreds of young Westchester women in a positive way to boost their self-confidence at the workplace and in everyday life.
In 2006, the program was founded by Nicole and Judith Sheindlin, who partnered with the Westchester County Office for Women. In 2007, Mamaroneck High School was chosen as the pilot school for Her Honor Mentoring. The first class of mentees consisted of eight high school students paired with eight local professional women who readily volunteered to be mentors.
In 2008, Mount Vernon H.S. was added, with White Plains H.S. coming on board in 2009. In 2010, Saunders Trades and Technical H.S. in Yonkers and Nelson Mandela H.S. in Mount Vernon joined the program.
Eventually, Nellie A Thornton H.S. in Mount Vernon, Gorton H.S. and Lincoln H.S. in Yonkers, New Rochelle H.S. and Port Chester H.S. were included in Her Honor Mentoring, with 71 mentees and mentors.
The legacy of this esteemed program is apparent in the many lives it influences. County Executive George Latimer welcomed the program back to Westchester and the Larchmont xxxxx Club for another year.
“Having a mentor’s guidance and leadership can make all the difference in the outcome of a person’s professional life,” he said. “The Her Honor program has given hundreds of young women the opportunity to learn from those who had once been in their shoes. The county’s Office for Women is proud of their partnership in this valuable program, and we are happy to continue the partnership for the 12th year.”
Judge Sheindlin added: “I like to think this program gives each of our mentees an opportunity, that little extra wonderful beginning, so they can be the hero of their own story.”
