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A Manual for Afterschool Mentoring Programs

for success

Copyright © 2012 World Vision, Inc., P.O. Box 9716, Mail Stop 321, Federal Way, WA 98063-9716; [email protected]. All rights reserved. No part of this resource may be reproduced for distribution except for the purposes of your program.

Author: Stevie Olver

Contributing authors: Jacqueline Collier, Laurie Delgatto, Anna Kalepo, Joyce Lowery, Nathalie Moberg, Steven McGlaun, Dena Parmer

Project consultant: Leonetta Elaiho

Project editor: Laurie Delgatto

Copyediting and design: Creative Solutions, World Vision U.S.

Printed in the United States of America

ISBN 978-09827162-7-4

During the preparation of this resource, all citations, facts, figures, Internet URLs, and other cited information were verified for accuracy. World Vision Resources has made every attempt to reference current and valid sources, but we cannot guarantee the content of any source and we are not responsible for any changes that may have occurred since our verification. If you find an error in, or have a question or concern about, any of the information or sources listed within, please contact World Vision Resources at [email protected].

Empowered for Success: A Manual for Afterschool Mentoring Programs84

Students and Parents

Part G

It is critical that students and their parents—as important stakeholders in the program—don’t just view themselves as “those being served,” but as partners. Just as you have encouraged your volunteer team to participate in the development and ownership of the program, you should do likewise with students and their parents. Their voices should carry just as much weight as everyone else’s. This section will help you identify ways to not only recruit students for your program, but also include them (and their parents) in casting the vision for and sharing ownership of the program.

Recruiting Students for the ProgramUse the following questions as a guide to begin to identify how you will recruit and engage students and their parents to partner with you and participate in the program.

Who will your target student population include?Example: We are looking for 15 third graders who are reading below grade level.

A Curriculum by World Vision 85

Students and Parents

What does your program’s vision mean to students and parents? Copy your notes from your Vision Translation page 69.

Students:

Parents:

The first, and perhaps most obvious, place to look for students to recruit is the school in your neighborhood. Having already completed the section on partnership with the school, you should have a good understanding of how to develop and build a strong relationship with the school’s leadership. At the same time that you are working on cultivating this partnership, you should be inquiring about students who might be a good fit for the program. Whether you meet to discuss student recruitment with the principal or counselor one-to-one, or with all of the teachers during a staff meeting, come prepared with copies of a flyer or brochure about the program for the school to distribute to students and their parents. If you created a student and/or parent job description, bring copies of those to distribute too. Be sure to include the following elements in your flyer or brochure:

• Program name

• Vision statement

• Day and time of program session

• Your contact information


Y Y

KidREACHOur vision is for every child in our community

to have a lifelong love of reading.

Tuesdays, 3:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.Harborview Elementary School

For more information, please email [email protected]

[ Sample Flyer ]


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Other places to consider when looking for students to recruit include organizations within the community and the community itself. Consider going door-to-door to houses and businesses in the neighborhood where the program will be located to distribute flyers and talk with people about the program. (This could also be an opportunity to recruit more volunteers, so be prepared to share about volunteer needs that you have if you get a sense that someone might be a good fit!) If you decide to go door-to-door, be safe and go in groups of two. Also, always let someone know where you are walking and for how long you plan to be gone.

Each program year will be different from the previous year in some way. Here are some questions to consider about your future program participants:

1. Will you allow students to return to the program for subsequent years, or will you recruit all new students each year based on feedback and recommendations from the school?

2. How long will students be allowed to participate in the program? Until they reach a certain grade level? Will you continue to work with them as they

graduate to upper grade levels (middle school or high school)?

3. If you do decide to work with students for as long as they continue to come, what changes will you need to make to the program so that it is developmentally age appropriate? What additional training will your volunteers need?

Create and photocopy a flyer or brochure for the school

to distribute to students and parents.

Who ______________________________ By when __________

If applicable: photocopy your student and parent job descriptions and attach them to the flyers or brochures.

Who ______________________________ By when __________

If applicable: recruit an adult volunteer to accompany you as you go door-to-door to share about the program.

Who ______________________________ By when __________

Students who are struggling academically may

have low self-confidence. While they are probably

excited to see their mentor when they show up to the

program, they may be embarrassed to tell their friends

that they “need tutoring.” Even parents can sometimes

be embarrassed to have their child participating

in a program designed to support students who are

struggling academically. One suggestion for addressing

this is to use wording in your flyer or brochure that

focuses more on the assets and strengths of the

program as opposed to the need you’re addressing.

For example, instead of an advertising message that

implies students participate because they struggle

in school, it could say, “Students in our program

experience greater success in school!”


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While They Wait: Student WaitlistsIt’s rare to have the perfect ratio of mentors to students. Usually, you have too much of one and not enough of the other. You may find that there is more demand for your program than you can meet. If this becomes the case, there are two things you should be prepared to do: 1) start a waitlist, and 2) maintain a list of other programs in the community that may be able to support the students that you are unable to take on. Waitlist tips

• Create a simple form/questionnaire that can be completed by parents, or by you over the phone, to add their children to the waitlist. (For a sample Waitlist Questionnaire, see Appendix One, page 116.) Avoid asking a parent to complete the entire application packet until you are sure you can accept their child into the program.

• Contact families on the waitlist at least once every two months to confirm that they want to remain on the list and that their contact information is still current. This also gives you an accurate number of students needing support in the event someone asks, “How many students are on your waitlist?”

• As tempting as it may be to handpick your next student from the list should you have an opening in the program, honor the order that the names came in. This way, if a parent calls you to see where they are on the list, you can honestly say, “You’re third on the list” or “There are two students ahead of you.” This gives them an idea of how long they may have to wait, and it also lets them know that you haven’t forgotten about them.

• Keep a current list of other academic mentoring programs and their contact information so that you can refer students on your waitlist to immediate opportunities they may be able to take advantage of.

You might be surprised to learn just

how many programs are offered in

your community. If there isn’t already a

community coalition of program providers,

consider asking some of the other programs

if they would find such a coalition beneficial.

Community coalitions can help programs

collaborate to meet common goals, network,

and share resources.

Create a waitlist questionnaire for parents to complete.

Who ______________________________ By when __________

Contact other programs in the community and collect information from them about what services they offer.

Who ______________________________ By when __________


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Create, make copies of, and assemble student application packets.

Who ______________________________ By when __________

Copy down each child’s emergency contact information and any food allergies onto a sheet that you will keep with you during the program sessions. If this information is locked away it will be hard to get to in an emergency.

Who ______________________________ By when __________

Identify where you will keep the completed student application packets. To ensure confidentiality, they

should be kept in a locked, secure location.

Who ______________________________ By when __________

Student Applications and Other PaperworkFor those students who will be participating in the program, you need to collect a few simple pieces of information for record-keeping purposes. Knowing who is (or was) a part of the program will help with any reporting you may need to do. A Student Application Form with an attached Parent Agreement Form should be collected for each student, for each year they participate. Samples of both of these forms are available in Appendix One, on pages 112 and 114.

Making a “good match” between mentors and students

is important to the effectiveness of the program.

When there is a bond between the mentor and the

student, the relationship thrives. Likewise, when there

is dissatisfaction from either party about the match,

more time will be spent in frustration rather than

on productive activities. What is your plan to match

students with an academic mentor? What will your

process be for making adjustments to matches that are

not going well?

You might want to consider stating at the beginning

of each school year that matches will be on a trial

basis for the first month, so that if you need to make a

change, it is not perceived as a negative event. You will

inevitably have matches that end when the mentor has

to move, experiences a life-changing event or illness

that requires them to step away from your program,

or needs to stop volunteering for countless other

reasons. When this occurs, it is important that you help

the student realize that the change is not happening

because they did something wrong. Work with both the

student and the mentor to ensure that there is healthy

closure to the relationship.


Providing Support and Encouragement to FamiliesTo ensure you have the support required for a successful program, parents need to have a clear understanding of your program and what is expected of the students and their families.

Parents need as much encouragement and support as their children. If their child has been struggling for more than a couple of years, a parent can feel defeated, tired, and frustrated. Parental attitudes regarding the program will vary widely—from elation that their child is finally getting some much-needed support, to disengagement and an attitude that the program provides free babysitting. Regardless of what you perceive their attitude to be, adopt the mindset that every parent wants the best for their child; they just might approach it differently than you would. Also, remember that not everyone places as high a value on education as you might. An effective and non-intimidating way to engage parents initially is to talk with them about what their expectations are for your program.

Some parents will have high expectations for how your program is going to help their child. Having high expectations is not a bad thing, so long as they are realistic. For example, if a parent thinks that their child is going to complete all of their homework for the week in the two hours they meet with the mentor, they will end up being disappointed, and perhaps even angry, because this is an unrealistic expectation. Make a point to talk with each parent individually about what their expectations are. The following are some questions you could ask parents to gauge their expectations:

1. What are you hoping your child will get out of this experience?

2. How much of your child’s homework are you hoping can be completed at (insert program name)?

3. Are there any skills you would like your child’s mentor to work on with him or her? For example, help with reading? Help with math? Better listening skills? Being more polite?

For parents who don’t have a response to any of these questions, ask them to share the following three things with you:

• What is something (insert child’s name) does that makes you proud?

• Is there something (insert child’s name) does or doesn’t do that concerns you?

• How do you think we might be able to work together to help (insert child’s name) with (insert concern listed above)?

If you discover through these conversations that several parents have unrealistic expectations, it would be a good idea to bring all of the parents together for a short meeting. At this meeting, review the program schedule and explain the importance and relevance of each item. Some parents may not understand why time is spent playing games or talking about how everyone’s day went. If you can justify the reason why time is spent doing certain things, then parents will see the value of those activities and adjust their expectations. If just one or two parents have unrealistic expectations, then you can discuss the program schedule with them in a one-to-one conversation.


Sometimes parents would prefer not getting out of their cars when they drop off or pick

up their child. In addition to this being a potential liability issue, it prevents you and your

volunteers from building any kind of relationship with them. Even if you decide to make it

mandatory that parents come inside to drop off and pick up their child, what incentive can

you offer to make it more enjoyable? Sometimes a homemade cookie or brownie can bring

around the most reluctant parents!

At the end of each session, request that your volunteers share at least one positive thing about the student with the parents (with the student present). If all they are used to hearing about their child from teachers or tutors is what they are doing wrong or how they are struggling, parents begin to associate bad feelings with the place (whether it’s the school or your program). Even something negative can be turned into a praise report. For example, instead of sharing that the child kept interrupting other students while they were trying to work, a mentor could share that the student earned an extra five minutes of free time because they stayed focused on their own work for an entire 10 minutes without interrupting anyone (insert big smile)!

When a student has worked really hard to meet a goal, you can use a copy of the “Hooray!” Card found in Appendix One on page 130 to praise them. These can be copied onto brightly colored cardstock and made available to mentors.

The lengths you go to support children’s parents will depend on the capacity of your leadership team and volunteers. As the program matures, you may consider incorporating some of these ideas for additional support to parents:

• ESL class: Provide English as a second language classes at the same time as the mentoring program for parents who would like to develop their English language skills.

• Vehicle maintenance support: Recruit volunteers with auto mechanic skills to perform basic vehicle maintenance or repairs free of charge (especially appreciated by single mothers in charge of their households).

• Holiday baskets: Put together holiday baskets with food and gifts for the whole

family. Drop them off in person to each home in need during the holidays.

• Back-to-school resources: Load up new or gently used backpacks with school supplies and distribute them to families in need at the beginning of the program year.

• Mobile dental van: Check to see if there is a mobile dental clinic that can come to your location to provide free dental checkups and cleanings for the whole family. This is especially appreciated by families with no health insurance coverage.


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Are there ways for parents to volunteer with

the program? For example, program sites

that serve a large Hispanic population, but

don’t have volunteers who speak Spanish,

may consider asking one of the parents

to volunteer as a translator. Remember:

if you are asking for volunteer support

from parents, treat them like all the other

volunteers: create a job description, have

them complete an application packet, provide

training, and recognize their contribution.

Lay out a plan for talking with each parent about their expectations.

Who ______________________________ By when __________

If applicable: set up a meeting time with the parents to review the program schedule.

Who ______________________________ By when __________

Choose a time to talk with your mentors about the importance of sharing positive feedback with the parents.

Who ______________________________ By when __________


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Family NightsFamily nights can be a fun way to engage parents, especially if you provide dinner for the whole family! Consider hosting two or three family nights throughout the course of your program year. Be sure to encourage your volunteers to invite their families as well. Even teachers can be included in the fun. Begin your planning by answering the following questions:

• Who should we invite?

• What should our agenda be?

• Do we want to have a theme?

» Holiday Celebration

» Reading Together

» Shake, Shuffle, and Roll: Math Games

» Open House

» Year-End Celebration

• What are our goals for this time together?

• What should we serve for dinner, or do we want to make it a potluck?

• When should we hold the event?

• What additional volunteer support will be needed to make this happen?

• Do we need to make any special arrangements for the space we will use?

An easy way to share the load for dinner

at a family night is to host something like

a taco bar or a baked potato bar. Each

invitee is asked to sign up to bring one

ingredient. For parents, teachers, and

volunteers who don’t have the time to

make an entire dish, this is an easy way

to participate!

Decide if you’ll do family nights.

Who ______________________________ By when __________

If applicable: answer the questions above to help you

plan your family night(s).

Who ______________________________ By when __________

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