Effective Mentoring Programs: Key Considerations & Best Practices

Transcription

1 Effective Mentoring Programs: Key Considerations & Best Practices Amy Cannata, MS LEARNS/National Mentoring Center Who are we? National Mentoring Center Assistance to the field at large Our projects: LEARNS For national service grantees and members Mentoring Resource Center For U.S. Department of Education grantees Who s in the room?..... Mentor Program? School-Based Community-Based Faith-Based Work-Based Group Mentoring E-Mentoring Peer Mentoring Intergenerational Others? How long? Less than 6 mos. 6 mos. 1 year 1-3 years 3-5 years 5+ years 10+ years Who? AmeriCorps AC*VISTA FGP/RSVP Iowa Mentoring Partnership member Amy Cannata 1

2 Session Goals Explore key research findings Identify foundations of effective programs Explore ideas for enhancing your own program Mentoring Defined Mentoring is a relationship over a prolonged period of time between two or more people where older, wiser, more experienced individuals provide constant, as needed support, guidance, and concrete help to the younger at-risk persons as they go through life. Does mentoring work? BB/BS: 1995 Impact study showed that compared to the control group those young people with mentors were: 46 percent less likely to start using illegal drugs 27 percent less likely to start drinking 52 percent less likely to skip a day of school 37 percent less likely to skip a class CAUTION! Be careful when using these findings Earned slightly higher grades (3% higher), and felt slightly better about how they would perform in school (4% better) Trusted their parents more (3%) and lied to them less (-37%) With peers they felt more emotionally supported (2%) i.e., more backed up by their friends and less criticized (Tierny, J.P., Grossman, J.B. & Resch, N. L., 1995) Amy Cannata 2

3 Does mentoring work? Reductions in school absence Overall academic performance Higher college participation Better school attitudes and behavior Less drug and alcohol use (especially among minority youth) Less likelihood of hitting others Less likelihood of committing misdemeanors or felonies More positive attitudes toward their elders and toward helping Improved parental relationships and support from peers (Herrera, C., et. all. 2007) (Jekielek, S., Moore, K., & Hair, E. 2002) & (DuBois, D. L., Holloway,B.E., Valentine, J.C., & Cooper, H. 2002) Does mentoring work? 2007 Making a Difference in Schools: The Big Brothers Big Sisters School-Based Mentoring Impact Study Major Recommendations: Increase match length Bridge the summer gap Choose supportive schools and foster those relationships Provide volunteers with sufficient levels of support and training Strengthen relationship quality Review the full report at How mentoring works Jean Rhodes Model Amy Cannata 3

4 The Role of the Mentor A mentor is Friend Coach Motivator Companion Sponsor Supporter Advisor Advocate A mentor is not Savior All Knowing Superhuman Parent Doer Fixer ATM Machine Entertainment Developmental Mentors Concentrated on establishing a strong relationships Efforts were centered on building trust once youth was receptive then mentors moved onto other goals Incorporated youth input and were flexible Results: Volunteers were satisfied with the process and the relationship Youth felt supported, wanted to continue the relationship long-term, and felt they could talk to their mentors about anything Amy Cannata 4

5 Prescriptive Mentors Initial efforts were outcome based Time was spent primarily setting goals and working towards those goals Volunteers had their own agenda Out to transform youth Expected equal responsibility from youth Results: Both volunteers and youth felt frustrated with the relationship Mentors meet consistently Frequent (weekly) contacts are key to success. It s better to meet for an hour once a week than 4 hours once a month students who rarely saw or spoke with their mentors did not experience benefits from program participation (Jekielek, S., Moore, K., & Hair, E., 2002). Mentors stick around The benefits of mentoring appear to accrue over a relatively long period of time. Youth who were matched 12 months or more showed greater improvements in: self-worth scholastic competence parental relationship quality school value drug and alcohol use (Grossman, J. B. & Rhodes, J. E. (2002). Amy Cannata 5

6 Mentoring Foundations Mentoring Foundations Strong Agency Capacity Proven Program Design Effective Community Partnerships Sustainable Resource Development Useful Program Evaluation Source: NWREL, Foundations of Successful Youth Mentoring, Strong Agency Capacity Agency must have experience, alignment, vision and understanding. Programs must have accountability & community awareness Program director should have experience with volunteers & youth management, as well as community organizations. Staff need ongoing training and support to ensure knowledge, skills and motivation. Amy Cannata 6

7 Proven Program Design Quality is more important than quantity. All parts work together to support the mentor/youth relationship. Written protocols provide clear expectations, increase knowledge & ongoing communication. The back end (training and monitoring) is as important as the front end (screening and matching). Effective Community Partnerships Community partnerships often define the success or failure of a program. Proactively accessing technical assistance expands program capacity. Who you know rather than what you know is often the solution to program challenges Mentoring is just one part of needed youth development work in the community. Sustainable Resource Development Broadening support to increase sustainability begins on day one. Diverse and local resource development offers the best chance of future success. Collaborate to help create a community-wide sustainable youth development system. Amy Cannata 7

8 Useful Program Evaluation If you don t know where you re going, you won t know when you get there. (Begin with the end in mind.) Data drives program improvement, resource development, and ultimately, program success. Planning for data collection begins with conceptualizing the program. Program Practices & Enhancements Amy Cannata 8