Ms. Mentor Returns

Ms. Mentor is back, and your task is to show her your knowledge of the necessary mentoring program components. Just choose the response that you think is the best advice for each mentoring program issue. Then your mentor, Ms. Mentor, will give you feedback on your answer.

Dear Ms. Mentor, As the recruitment coordinator of a mentoring program with a long waiting list for boys, I am very concerned about the lack of men who are willing to volunteer. What can I do to get more men to commit to mentoring? Where Have All the Good Men Gone
	Consider increasing the flexibility of the policies, like time commitment, that might be preventing men from volunteering with your program.
	Develop recruitment messages that use men to promote both the fun aspect of mentoring and the positive difference they can make to a young person.
	Target your recruitment in areas where there are high concentrations of men, such as police and fire departments, men's service organizations, fraternities, men's athletic clubs, armed forces, trade unions, retired men's groups and so on.
	Directly address men's fears of false allegations of abuse in your recruitment materials. Let them know of mentoring opportunities that may offer more security, such as site based mentoring programs. Let them know that you screen the children with the volunteer's safety and reputation in mind.
	Keep in touch with male mentors whose matches closed successfully, and encourage them to be rematched.
	Consider starting a couples matching program, in which a man can volunteer with his significant other.
	Ask each of your current mentors to encourage a man whom he or she thinks would make a good mentor, to volunteer.

Dear Ms. Mentor, As a casework supervisor in a community based mentoring program, I am always looking to improve the ways in which we can support effective relationship building strategies among our mentors. Based on your review of the research, what practices should we be encouraging among our mentors through our training and supervision to help them develop positive mentoring relationships? Encouraging Excellence Note: Out of the 15 practices listed below, check off the 10 that you think constitute the best advice, and then verify your answers.
	Be a friend
	Have realistic expectations and goals
	Have fun together
	Give your mentee plenty of advice
	Give your mentee voice and choice in deciding on activities
	Be positive
	Let your mentee have much of the control over what the two of you talk about - and how you talk about it
	Listen
	Wait for your mentee to make contact with you to set up your next outing
	Aim to build trust quickly
	Respect the trust your mentee places in you
	Speak to your mentee directly and openly about your opinions and values, even if they differ those that your mentee and his or her family hold
	Remember that your relationship is with the young person, not the young person's parent
	Strongly urge your mentee to talk about issues that you think are bothering him or her.
	Remember that you are responsible for building the relationship.

Now that you have built your mentoring program using all the essential elements, it is time to evaluate the finished product.

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