Posted by eporter on September 27, 2024
Now Available! New Guide to Help Parents/Caregivers Maximize Benefits of Mentoring for Their Young Person
Mentoring Central is excited to share that the National Mentoring Resource Center (NMRC) has released a new guide to help parents and caregivers support a young person involved in or help a young person become involved in a mentoring program.
Parents and caregivers of mentees play an impactful role in the mentoring relationship by encouraging their child to stay involved in mentoring, communicating with their child’s mentor and program staff, and helping coordinate their child’s involvement. However, many parents and caregivers may feel unsure about how they can contribute positively to their child’s mentoring or feel concerned about what their child may experience as part of the program.
The new guide, entitled “How to Maximize Mentoring for Your Young Person: A Guide for Parents and Caregivers,” was created to help parents and caregivers feel more at ease about their child’s mentoring and learn practical strategies to promote positive mentoring experiences for their child. Mentoring Central Research Scientist Dr. Rebecca Stelter co-wrote the guide with Dr. Renée Spencer of Boston University and Dr. Crystal Aschenbrener of Campbellsville University.
“We are very excited to share this guide with mentoring programs, so they can provide this resource directly to parents and caregivers,” says Dr. Stelter. “Mentoring can be a new and unfamiliar type of relationship, and everyone involved needs some guidance on what to expect and what to do.”
The guide teaches parents and caregivers what mentoring is and how it may positively impact their child. More specifically, parents learn about the different types of mentoring programs that exist (e.g., community-based programs, group mentoring programs, peer mentoring programs) and how to choose the right one for their child to be involved in. Parents and caregivers receive tips and access to resources that they can use to enroll their child in a program when they are ready.
Parents and caregivers also learn about the roles that they may play in their child’s mentoring. They can read about how to check in with mentoring program staff and share information about their child to support the relationship. In addition, the guide discusses ways that parents and caregivers can communicate with their child’s mentor and pay attention to boundaries in the mentoring relationship for the mentee’s best interest.
The guide also provides parents and caregivers with information, so they know what to expect when their child’s mentoring relationship comes to an end and how they can support the mentee through it.
If you are interested in accessing this free resource for parents and caregivers of current or potential mentees, follow this link: https://nationalmentoringresourcecenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Mentoring-Guide-for-Parents-and-Caregiver.pdf.
To view other helpful resources for mentors, mentees, program staff, and parents/caregivers of mentees, visit the NMRC website or Mentoring Central’s website for more.