Journal of the Effective Schools Project, Volume 6, 2000 Page: 25
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will understand what the mentor role
is and is not, and will work to develop
a relationship of friendship, exhibit a
good self-esteem, respect the child's
cultural background, be on time, lis-
ten attentively, and communicate with
students, parents, and school person-
nel.
* Suggested Mentor Activities. Some
of the most effective activities include
helping students set goals, using or-
ganizational skills, reading a book to-
gether, and spending time just talking
about things of interest to the student.
It is important to keep in mind the pur-
pose of the mentoring process.
Search for Mentors
The quest for volunteers to participate
in the mentor program is one of the
greatest challenges. It is very impor-
tant to understand that many people
are uncertain of their ability to be a
mentor. Therefore, the campus coor-
dinator becomes very important as an
encourager and coach in the recruit-
ing process. The coordinator should
be proactive in the search for volun-
teers and help the mentors understand
the possible benefits for them as well
as the student. The coordinator should
also look around at possible commu-
nity resources and seek help from
them in finding mentors. For example,
we contacted the Fire and Police De-
partments, churches, civic organiza-
tions, and individuals from the com-
munity. One of the largest recruiters
for the Bowie Mentor Program is a
local church. They decided to encour-
age and recruit members to participate
in the mentor program and arranged
to have a contact person work with
the school counselor in reaching pro-
spective volunteers for the program.
Getting started is the most difficult
step. Once several successful men-
tors have been found, they will bringothers into the program. Then, the
need to provide the training and get
the program started as quickly as pos-
sible becomes very important.
Training is done on campus with ei-
ther the district coordinator or the
campus coordinator. The orientation
is necessary to help the mentor know
what is expected of him/her in the
mentor relationship, and also provides
information about campus rules and
expectations. During this time the
mentors are introduced to the princi-
pal and other key personnel that can
assist them while they are in the
school. Training materials, hand-
books, and locations available for
mentors are provided at this time.
Selecting Students
Every student at Bowie Elementary is
eligible for the program. However,
because of the limited number of men-
tors, students are selected from re-
quests by teachers, parents, and stu-
dents. The counselor plays a vital role
in making the final selection for stu-
dent participation in the program. Stu-
dents who are considered "at risk" are
more likely to be selected for the pro-
gram. All students who participate are
required to have parent permission
letters on file.
After the students are selected and
mentors are trained, mentor/student
matches are introduced. The counse-
lor matches students with a mentor us-
ing personal profile information from
both the volunteer and student. This
allows the pair to have something in
common to discuss and often helps in
communication between the pair.
Monitoring the Program
Communication is the key to keeping
a program healthy. It is imperative to
have consistent on-going assessment
and communication in the program.Communication is
the key to keeping a
program healthy.
It is imperative
to have consistent
on-going assessment
and communication
in the program.Regularly scheduled meetings with
25
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Tarleton State University. Effective Schools Project. Journal of the Effective Schools Project, Volume 6, 2000, periodical, 2000; Stephenville, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth201683/m1/26/: accessed May 4, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Tarleton State University.