Starting a Program
Developing a mentoring program is a great way to get involved and make a valuable contribution in your community. Taking time to plan carefully before the program begins can eliminate a lot of barriers during the implementation process.
- Assess the needs and resources available in the community and see if there are existing programs with a similar mission or with which you might be able to collaborate. Learn more about community assessments and view other youth serving programs in your area.
- Design the parameters of the program.
- Define the youth population that will be served.
- Consider age, gender, mentoring need, and common characteristics.
- Identify who you will recruit as mentors.
- Determine the type of mentoring relationships (e.g., who will be served, and how they will be served?).
- Determine the focus of the mentoring relationships.
- Academic
- School to career
- Positive youth development
- Determine where the mentoring sessions will occur.
- Determine how often mentors and mentees will meet and the desired length of the mentoring matches.
- Determine desired outcomes.
- Determine if the program will stand alone or collaborate with other programs.
- Identify key stakeholders and generate buy-in.
- Plan how the program will be evaluated.
- Develop policies and procedures to support the program.
- Establish a case management protocol to ensure communication with mentors and mentees.
- Define the youth population that will be served.
- Plan how the program will be managed (e.g., organizational structure).
- Identify a management team.
- Ensure clear roles.
- Establish policies and procedures.
- Implement ongoing training.
- Develop a financial plan (e.g., securing funding streams, establishing internal controls).
- Identify a management team.
- Implement the program.
- Continuously evaluate the program and adjust as needed (MENTOR, 2005).
One way to get additional assistance in both the planning and implementation stages is to reach out to a national mentoring organization or collaborate with other community organizations, schools, businesses, and programs in order to access resources and learn from the experiences of others.
MENTOR. (2005). How to build a successful mentoring program using the elements for effective practice. Retrieved from http://www.mentoring.org/program_resources/elements_and_toolkits?eeptoolkit