iMentor Blog

Obama Declares January 2010 National Mentoring Month

Posted on December 23, 2009 - 1:00am

After his first full year in office, President Barack Obama officially proclaimed January 2010 as National Mentoring Month! iMentor is proud to be part of the national call to action as we continue to strive toward the ultimate goal of providing mentoring to every child who needs it. Both iMentor NYC and iMentor Interactive are excited to participate in the national celebration of mentoring, engaging volunteers in New York City and mentoring organizations across the country.

On January 4th, President Obama said:

Many of us are fortunate to recall a role model from our own adolescent years who pushed us to succeed or pulled us back from making a poor decision. We carry their wisdom with us throughout our lives, knowing the unique and timeless gift of mentorship. During this month, I encourage Americans to give back by mentoring young people in their communities who may lack role models, and pass that precious gift on to the next generation

President Obama - January 4, 2010

iMentor has planned several activities throughout the month of January to celebrate National Mentoring Month. If you are currently managing a mentoring program, check out some of the creative ideas iMentor Interactive suggests for you and your program participants on the iMentor Interactive Calendar. If you are a current iMentor NYC volunteer or you are interested in getting involved, check out the iMentor NYC Calendar.

To read the rest of the Presidential Proclamation

Learn More about National Mentoring Month

Posted in iMentor Interactive, iMentor NYC
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Mentor of the Month: December 2009

Posted on December 21, 2009 - 10:49am

Ted and Pierre at iMentor drop-in center

Month Awarded: December 2009

Length of Match: 1 year

Partner School: Brooklyn International High School

What makes Ted our mentor of the month? Ted is HIS MENTEE'S BIGGEST FAN

Ted is extremely supportive of his mentee, Pierre. He not only offers encouragement through email, but helps Pierre bridge the language gap by writing in both his native French and English. At the in-person meetings, Ted is always excited to see Pierre and is engaged in hearing the recent update on school and life. Another way that Ted is there for his mentee is his friendly consistency and words of wisdom, always written with care and excellent timing. More than that, Ted is always reaching out to iMentor to brainstorm ways to support his mentee. Through Ted’s utmost support and encouragement of his mentee over the start of their match, Pierre’s confidence has quickly grown, and he is now able to write primarily in English.

Pierre says...

“I want to improve my English, I think my mentor could help me in talking about my subject. I want to improve my personality because it’s the most important thing we need in a person. I just know one day I get a better [grade] from each teacher in my school.”

Ted says...

“I know that it is really hard being the new kid in school, especially when you are still learning English... I hope you can take my advice to heart and remember that things will get better and that it doesn't matter what any of the other kids say. I promise you that a year from now things will already be much better.”

Recruit Mentors on Google for Free!

Posted on December 17, 2009 - 1:00am

One of our intrepid iMi members, Boston Scholars Program, has come across a snazzy way to get free advertising on Google – via Google Maps. Even though BSP is a relatively small organization, it’s now the #1 search result for “volunteer in boston!”

You can find out more here.

Thanks to Compliments International for a great explanation of the process!

Posted in iMentor Interactive, iMentor NYC
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Great Tool for Data Import

Posted on December 10, 2009 - 1:00am

Do you have a ton of old data sitting around in filing cabinets? Would you like to get it off the paper and into your database? If so, you may want to check out a great data capture tool we recently discovered: PDF to Excel. This little application will let you scan your old paper files into your computer and convert them to spreadsheet files that you can then import into your database.

It sure beats entering all that data by hand!

And best of all, they have a Social Involvement Program that offers free licenses of the software to organizations serving kids.

Pretty cool, right?

Partners in Closing the Achievment Gap

Posted on December 7, 2009 - 1:00am

iMentor would like to recognize a great organization working to close the education achievement gap: the Education Equality Project.

The Education Equality Project is a bipartisan group of elected officials, civil rights leaders, and education reformers working to bring equity to our public education system.

Here's what they have to say about the achievement gap:

We have a problem: By 4th grade, Black and Latino students are, on average, nearly 3 years behind their White and Asian counterparts. 89% of Latino and 86% of African American middle and high school students read below grade level. Not to mention, American students drop out of high school on average every 26 seconds. The numbers go on and on. This isn't a new problem. It goes back decades, leaving children under-educated and unprepared. This is known as the education achievement gap.

Our public schools cannot continue to fail millions of students each year. Join us to learn more about how to transform schools and results for our students. It will take every one of us to bring equity to our schools. We are building a movement and we need YOU!

Learn More about the Education Equality Project

Become a Facebook fan
Follow EEP on Twitter

Who Mentored Oprah Winfrey??

Posted on December 1, 2009 - 1:00am

That’s right, even Oprah Winfrey had a mentor! This is a great article from whomentoredyou.org that gives a brief description of the impact Ms. Duncan made on Oprah’s life. It is one more example, among many, of how powerful a mentor (a colleague, friend, a formal mentor, or even a teacher like in Oprah’s case) can be.

Oprah has inspired and impacted millions of Americans and people worldwide. Despite her announcement regarding her last days as the Queen of talk shows, she will certainly continue to make a difference. Without a doubt, at sometime, Oprah may have also mentored; a great reason why mentoring is one of the best ways to “pay it forward”.

Read the full length article

Support iMentor on Facebook

Posted on November 25, 2009 - 1:00am

Chase Community Giving is leveraging the power of social media to donate $5MM to various charities this winter. Facebook users worldwide are voting for nonprofits they believe in, and charities with the most votes will win between $25K and $1MM!

It is incredibly easy to vote and will definitely make an impact.

Vote for iMentor and your favorite organizations

Posted in Impact, iMentor Interactive, iMentor NYC
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Should mentees choose their mentors?

Posted on November 24, 2009 - 1:00am

iMentor and many other mentoring programs match pairs based on their compatibility (interests, personality, etc.). And iMentor Interactive allows mentees to include their preferences for certain compatibilities (career, academic, or personal) in its matching algorithm.

But what do you think about mentees getting to meet all potential mentors before choosing a match? Obviously, this presents a number of logistical challenges, especially for large programs. However, if you put those concerns aside for a moment, how would you feel about giving your mentees a choice?

For one program’s perspective, check out this short paper from the University of Texas San Antonio.

Thanks to the awesome YOUTHMENTORING listserv for bringing this to our attention!

iMi Member of the Month: GEAR UP Wyandanch

Posted on November 20, 2009 - 1:00am

GEAR UP Wyandanch

iMentor Interactive is excited to announce that GEAR UP Wyandanch is our inaugural Member of the Month. This accolade is designed to recognize organizations and program administrators that are leading the mentoring movement in this country by making mentoring relationships available to greater numbers of young people.

And thus, Frank Pomata and GEAR UP are a perfect first selection, given their hard work to bring mentoring to Wyandanch, a working class community on Long Island. Despite limited resources and a tough economy, Frank, GEAR UP’s Assistant Director, has persevered in his recruitment efforts and has brought local students and community members together for the first time. And he’s got big plans to continue building the mentoring movement in the community.

Congrats Frank and GEAR UP!

Vote for iMentor!

Posted on November 19, 2009 - 1:00am

Free Range Studios is offering $15,000 in pro bono design/strategic communications services, which iMentor would use to help recruit more male mentors. Over 400 organizations have applied. For the first round of the competition, users vote for grant applicants online. Free Range will give the grant to one of the organizations with the most votes.

If you have a moment, vote for iMentor