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Home / Newsroom / JCU Students Win Mentor of the Year Award
Ned Barnes '15 and Michael Gong '15, co-founders of The Carroll Ballers, were recently named the Cleveland Indians 2015 Mentors of the Year. The Indians created the Mentor of the Year Award as a way to find and honor leaders in the Cleveland and Northeast Ohio communities. The Indians received numerous nominations before narrowing the field to three finalists. The public was then given the opportunity to vote on a winner through the team's website. As part of their prize, Barnes and Gong have been invited to meet team manager Terry Francona this month at the Indians annual Season Ticket Holder Town Hall Meeting. The Carroll Ballers is a unique service opportunity for John Carroll students that combines the game of basketball with a mentoring program for residents of the Cuyahoga County Juvenile Detention Center (CCJDC). The goal is successful re-entry to the community when the CCJDC youth are released. As of spring 2015, almost 75 JCU students are working with seven CCJDC groups, and there is a waiting list of JCU students who want to participate. Learn more about the award and hear from Barnes and Gong on the Indians' website.