College Educated Men Needed For High School Mentor2.0 Program
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cumberland & Salem Counties (BBBS) needs your help. The agency currently has an urgent need for male mentors with an associate degree, or higher, who would like to be matched with high school students taking part in the BBBS Mentor2.0 program. The Program provides students with the leadership, career, and social skills needed to graduate high school college ready.
According to BBBS officials, nationally, 66% of youth on the waiting list for Big Brothers Big Sisters organizations are boys, but only 36% of volunteer mentors are men. The problem is even more acute locally, particularly with this program.
“Our first group of Mentor2.0 students was 83% male and we have two more groups of students to match,” said BBBS Director of Programs Tygh Powell. “We have amazing individuals in the program who have such great potential. All they need is someone to help bring it out in them. When a student in need is matched with a mentor, someone who spends time with them on a regular basis, someone who listens and cares, their entire world changes and they begin to discover opportunities and possibilities they never dreamed existed.”
As part of the Mentor2.0 program, mentor and mentee matches get to know each other through an innovative combination of weekly messages via a secure web-based platform and monthly group events. A BBBS staff member works with each match through the platform to manage, monitor, and evaluate the program in order to ensure success. The basic mentor requirements for the program include:
● Mentors must be at least 21 years of age and hold an associate degree or higher.
● Maintain a reliable internet connection.
● Commit to mentoring for at least one year.
● Commit to sending one weekly message on an interesting topic thatMentor2.0 provides through the platform.
● Commit to meeting your mentee once every four weeks for two hours at aMentor2.0 facilitated event.
● Agree to only communicate and meet within the above framework, for curriculum focus and program fidelity.
“The Mentor2.0 program is perfect for those who want to volunteer and impact the community but find it difficult to do with a busy schedule,” Powell said. “It enables volunteers to mentor from home, the office, or even the airport thanks to the online nature of the program. Applications of this model in other cities have demonstrated significant increases in on-time high school graduation, college acceptance, enrollment, and persistence rates. If you are a male who has a desire to help make a difference, accept the challenge and help to fulfill the potential of youth in our community by becoming a big brother.”
“Most of us had someone in our lives, other than a parent, who made a difference to us,” said Donna Bennett, BBBS Cumberland/Salem President and CEO. “This is what you can do for a student in our program by volunteering as a mentor, showing you care, having fun with them, and listening to them talk about whatever is going on in their lives. It is a series of small, teachable moments like this that, in the end, can make a profound impact on their future.”
If you are interested in helping BBBS meet our urgent need for male volunteers, please contact Tygh Powell at 856.692.0916, or by email at tpowell@southjerseybigs.org.
To learn more about additional ways you can support Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cumberland and Salem Counties, please visit our website at www.southjerseybigs.org.
