building partnerships in schools
DESCRIPTION
This presentation reviews key elements to building a successful mentoring partnership with a school. We will explore considerations for working with schools and how to determine if your program design will fit in a school setting. We will also cover tips for a successful meeting with key decision makers and maintain your school based program.TRANSCRIPT
Building PartnershipsIn Schools
Today’s Agenda
• Know your potential school partner
• Evaluate the fit of your program to the potential school
• Have a successful meeting
• Maintain your partnership
• Resources
• Questions
What is school based mentoring?
Typically, School Based Mentoring is a K–12 student is paired with an adult from the community or an older (usually high school) student in a supportive one-to-one relationship at the school site.
Considerations for Working with Schools
• The school’s culture, policies, and procedures
• Orientation of your mentors to school culture
• Be understanding of the school staff and administrators experiences with previous outside programs
• Other outside programs in the school
Considerations for Working with Schools
• Your program staff presence
• Three-way communication
• Trouble shooting
• Partnerships between organizations often depend on particular individuals within each organization
Getting to Know the School & District
• School district website• Specific school site website• Michigan School Report Card
oeaa.state.mi.us/ayp• Know the grades of your school and where
they go next• Check out programs already offered at the
school• Identify a champion• Connect with the school counselor or
secretary• Be alert to potential “turf” issues
Exploring Your Program Design for School Based Mentoring
• Consider your program design and goals for school based mentoring
• Flexibility with school administration
• Longer, stronger matches for positive youth outcomes
• Educational objectives
Who Will Become Mentees?
• Student needs & program objectives• Which students• Mentee outreach/referrals• Mentee interviews• Parental consent• How many
Mentor Sources
• Beneficial to identify a source for each school
• Proximity for the mentor is still a key factor• Consider these sources
– Mentors already in your program– Corporate / work site volunteers– Service club– Retirees / senior citizens volunteers– College volunteers– High school volunteers
Match Meetings
When– Time of day– Day(s) of week– Frequency– Length of each match meeting– Start of program and end of program year
Where– Specific room– Are there options for space
Meeting structure– Individual or group match meetings– Activities that fit program goals
Support of Program & Matches
• Identify your key staff for program
• Support of matches– On site during match meetings?– Frequency of connecting– Support from school staff
Support Needed from School
• Funding for the program
• Space needed
• Role of the principal, teachers, school secretary and/or other school personnel
• Information needed from the school about mentees to evaluate your program
Program Timeline
Consider the “ideal” time for these:• Student referrals• Student interviews• Mentor recruitment & screening• First match meetings• Match meeting & match support schedule• Special events• End of the school year for matches
– Summer contact– Closure if necessary
• Evaluation
Program Operational Items
• Prepare a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)– Responsibilities of each party.– Outline elements of your program design– Needed space(s) – School liaison role
• Legal and Liability Issues– Screening mentors– Confidentiality– Safety – Insurance coverages and limits– Procedures for reporting and tracking any incidents.
• Financial agreementsSchool's contribution to the program– In-kind donations– Mentor recognition ceremonies – Incentive for the school liaison
Meeting with the School
• Decision maker• Identify any connections your
organization may have currently• Find a “champion”• Middle school and high schools -
guidance counselors or school social worker
• Good to know the secretary• Brining other community partners to
the table
A Successful Meeting
• Best time of the year• May need to have multiple meetings to
get to right person• Bring your champion and program staff• Keep it short and sweet• Utilize your MOU as a meeting agenda• Get to know your decision maker• Be prepared to answer questions
A Successful Meeting
Sell your program. – Share a success story– Share data– Share the benefit for students and school– Which students do you want to serve– Where you will get mentors – share if you already have
mentors available– Safety
Ask about school’s rules for volunteersBe flexible with your program designUsing the MOU
– School Role– Program Role– Mentor Role
If you can – have the prepared MOU ready for signing!
Challenges
• Meeting with the right person at the right time
• Selling your program benefits
• School personnel support for program
• School calendar
• Space for matches
• Staff changes
Maintaining the Partnership
• Communication• Solicit feedback• Problem solve• Recognize/celebrate your matches at school
and invite school administration to join your group
• Attend teacher/staff meetings• Recognize your school liaisons• Appreciate the school secretary• Program Evaluation – share your results• Consider an end of the year report
Conclusion
Building a successful partnership elements
• Knowing school
• Consider your program design and fit for the school site
• Successful meeting – prepared & flexible
• Be sure to maintain your partnership
Resources:
Northwest Regional Education Laboratory – National Mentoring Center
– The ABC’s of School-Based Mentoring, Technical assistance packet
educationnorthwest.org/resource/647
U.S. Department of Education – Mentoring Resource Center
– Keeping Mentoring Relationships Going during the Summer Months
edmentoring.org
School Based Mentoring BBBSA PPV
ppv.org/ppv/publications/assets/32_publication.pdf
The Mentor Consulting Group
– Two Decades of Learned Lessons from School-Based Mentoring
mentorconsultinggroup.com/pub/lessons
Resources: MENTOR
• Elements of Effective Practice Toolkit– www.mentoring.org– Forms, checklists, sample documents, etc
• Research in Action SeriesIssue 6: School Based Mentoringwww.mentoring.org/downloads/mentoring_387.pdf
Now What?
• Bring this information back to YOUR mentoring program– What are your program’s strategies for
partnership building with schools?
• Mentor Michigan Website – www.mentormichigan.org– Handouts, resources, related websites– Webinars on a variety of topics
Upcoming Webinar
Match Closure AnalysisJoin us for this webinar to learn how your program can approach match closure analysis. We will discuss which closed matches to review and what areas of your program to review. Deciding to conduct a match closure analysis will help your program have longer and stronger matches. In the long run, match closure analysis is an investment that will save you time and more; give you valuable experience; and help you to preserve one of your most valuable resources – your mentors.
May 17, 2011 at 2:00pm
May 19, 2011 at 9:00am
Visit the Training and TA page on the Mentor Michigan website (www.mentormichigan.org) to register!
Questions or Comments?