What is Mentoring

 Mentoring is a one-on-one relationship between a youth and a caring adult.  Mentoring relationships help students to appreciate who they are while developing the skills they need to succeed.

Our program began in the fall of 2001, and has mentors working with Grade 6, 7 and 8 students for one hour a week during the school year.  The program is school-based, which means that students and their mentors meet on school grounds during the school day.    

The success of school-based mentoring programs is dependent on the support of volunteer mentors.  Your gift of time is essential to the program’s success.  We know that you and our students will benefit from the experience.  

To help you gain an understanding of our program, the following are answers to frequently asked questions.

Mentoring is a one-on-one relationship between a youth and a caring adult.  Mentoring relationships help students to appreciate who they are while developing the skills they need to succeed.

Research shows that mentoring relationships help students to develop work ethics and responsibility, improve self-esteem and attitudes towards school, improve relationships with peers and family members and increase communication skills. The presence of a variety of positive influences in a child’s environment is crucial, especially at an age where children are developing relationships with those outside of their family.  Mentoring relationships help children to develop confidence to seek guidance from caring supportive adults.  It is a skill that will help them in high school, college and the workforce.

A mentor will spend one hour a week during the school year engaging in a friendly visit.  During a visit, the mentor and mentee may use a computer in the media center, play a board game, work on a puzzle, make a craft or visit the gymnasium.  A mentor allows the relationship to develop with the student’s interests in mind and is respectful of the mentee’s viewpoint.  A mentor does not replace the role of a parent or teacher.  A mentor is a friend.

In research performed by the Connecticut and National Mentoring partnerships, men and women involved in mentoring programs reported that they:

§         returned to work and home happier,

§         were more appreciative of youth from diverse backgrounds,

§         were better able to relate to children,

§         improved their own values and belief system,

§         felt good about themselves for impacting a child’s life,

§         were more patient, and

§         improved their relationships at work and home.

Prospective mentors will need to complete an application packet, provide business and personal references, attend an interview, and agree to a police background check.  Once the application process is complete, mentors will need to attend a training session.  The training session will help you to further understand your role, give you strategies to help you develop your mentoring relationship and introduce you to the mentoring support staff.  The mentoring commitment is approximately forty hours over the course of the school year.  You will need to be available for the initial two-hour training, one hour a week during the school year and for two group meetings with all program participants.

The Mentoring Program will:

• incur the cost of the police background check,

•  provide initial and ongoing training,

• plan two group meetings of mentors, mentees and program staff,

• provide games, puzzles and supplies for your weekly visits,

• provide ongoing support for any questions or concerns, and

• formally recognize your contributions 

Make the most of an hour.  Mentor a child in South Windsor.