Big Brothers Big Sisters mentoring program builds kids’ educational success

The effect of one-on-one mentorship on a young person’s life has lasting benefits for their future success and mental health — an issue studied by the 120-year-old organization Big Brothers Big Sisters of America (BBBS).

Pahrump has had a difficult time sustaining this organization — it was shuttered in 2005 due to lack of volunteers. As the population grows, BBBS is working to bring their brand of mentorship to under-served youth in the community.

Championing this cause for BBBS is recent college graduate and former Pahrump Valley High School graduate, Maya Khandpur, Program and Community Outreach manager.

“Big Brothers Big Sisters is here to be an additional layer of support for our community, our educators, and our families here in Pahrump,” states Khandpur. “Our goal is to help youth build confidence, achieve educational success, and engage in fun, safe recreational activities with trusted adults. Mentorship changes lives. Guiding a child today can help strengthen our entire community tomorrow.”

BBBS matches carefully screened and vetted volunteer mentors, or “Bigs” with kids (“Littles”) ages 6-15 years old, with similar interests, usually from single-parent, lower-to middle-income households.

Aside from this traditional program where a “Big” picks up a “Little” at their home and spends time in the local area once or more a month, BBBS also offers the “Stars” program, a school-based program in which high school seniors who are looking to bolster their volunteer/extracurricular requirements for college applications, spend one to two hours per week at the “Little’s” school doing fun activities.

With the school year wrapping up, Khandpur says, ”We’re going to do everything we can to be there for the 2026 to 2027 school year. I think it’s important for the children — the younger children — to have those kinds of role models.” Her current goal is to reach out for volunteers to be “Bigs” and enroll qualified “Littles” for the traditional mentorship program.

Khandpur currently has one matched pair of a “Big” and “Little” that were in place prior to her stepping into the position she started last March. In addition, “I have one little girl who is going to be matched with a volunteer, we’re just waiting for this volunteer to finish her onboarding process. And then I have two more volunteers and one little girl that is looking for a volunteer,” Khandpur detailed.

One of Khandpur’s “Big” volunteers, who is currently undergoing the vetting and orientation process is UNLV junior Atina Burnett. The 20-year-old told the Pahrump Valley Times why she decided to volunteer as a “Big” for BBBS. “I am going into my third year of college at UNLV with a full-ride scholarship, and I want to be able to pass along what I have learned and how I have persevered. I think my experiences can help someone else make their dreams come true like mine did. I have personal experience of how a role model has helped me achieve my own personal goals and success, and I don’t think I would have what I have today without having people to look up to you and to lean on.”

Burnett continues, “So I would love to be that person for others. Success is never a solo journey. You need support, mentors, encouragement and just someone to be there when it gets hard.”

For more information on volunteering or how to donate to Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Nevada, visit bbbsn.org. If interested in becoming a mentor or signing up a child to be mentored, call or text Maya Khandpur at (775) 298-5333, or email her at mkhandpur@bbbsn.org.

John Clausen is a freelance reporter living in Pahrump.