Federal Support for Mentoring
Established in January 2014, the National Mentoring Resource Center is a resource for mentoring tools, program and training materials, as well as access to no-cost training and technical assistance. The goal of the National Mentoring Resource Center is to improve the quality and effectiveness of mentoring across the country by supporting youth mentoring practitioners. In addition to accessing online resources, mentoring programs can apply for no-cost training and technical assistance to support them in more deeply incorporating evidence-based practices, ultimately leading to greater positive outcomes for youth.
While accessible to the general public, the primary audience for the National Mentoring Resource Center is youth mentoring practitioners looking for support in more deeply incorporating evidence-based practices to support positive youth outcomes. In the fall of 2013, MENTOR analyzed needs and trends in the field across an array of stakeholders. The results of this analysis informed the initial development of the National Mentoring Resource Center.
The program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention in partnership with MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership.
Resources
Mentoring for Preventing and Reducing Substance Use and Associated Risks among Youth
This review takes stock of the research that addresses the potential for mentoring to serve as a strategy for preventing and reducing substance use and the negative effects on personal health and well-being that may stem from this behavior. The review suggests several take-home messages for mentoring researchers and practitioners.
Impact Evaluation of the U.S. Department of Education’s Student Mentoring Program U.S. Department of Education, Institutes of Education Sciences (PDF, 295 pages)
This report by the U.S. Department of Education’s Institutes of Education Sciences used an experimental design in which students were randomly assigned to a treatment or control group. Thirty-two purposively selected school mentoring programs and 2,573 students took part in the evaluation, which estimated the impact of the programs over one school year on a range of student outcomes. The evaluation also describes the characteristics of the programs and the mentors, and provides information about program delivery.
National Mentoring Resource Center
The National Mentoring Resource Center is a program of the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention and MENTOR: The National Mentoring Partnership. The Center provides mentoring tools and information, program and training materials, and technical assistance, particularly relating to delinquency prevention, victimization, and juvenile justice system involvement, to help local programs and practitioners improve the quality and effectiveness of their mentoring efforts.
National Science Foundation Undergraduate Research and Mentoring in the Biological Sciences
The goal of the Undergraduate Research and Mentoring in the Biological Sciences (URM) program is to increase the number and diversity of individuals pursuing graduate studies in all areas of biological research supported by the NSF Directorate for Biological Sciences. Support will be provided to academic institutions to establish innovative programs to engage undergraduates in a year-round research and mentoring activity. Particular emphasis will be placed on broadening participation of members of groups historically underrepresented in science and engineering: African Americans, Alaska Natives, American Indians, Hispanic Americans, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders, and persons with disabilities.
Office of Juvenile Justice and Youth Programs Mentoring Resources
Provides resources and information about mentoring and links to mentoring organizations.
Girls Health.gov
Provides brief descriptions on school- and community-based mentoring.
National Criminal Justice Reference Services(NCJRS): Special Feature on Mentoring
To mark the tenth year of National Mentoring Month in 2011, NCJRS provided a special feature on mentoring providing resources, funding opportunities, and related resources on mentoring.
Office of Disability Employment Policy: Cultivating Leadership
Information is provided on how mentoring can help to cultivate leadership skills. Different types of mentoring, characteristics of successful mentoring relationships, and the benefits of mentoring to both mentor and mentee are discussed.