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Building Network of Support for Youth
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As we approach the end of this school year we face uncertainty because of the pandemic, because of unequal access to learning resources and opportunities, and because of many other challenges that face all of us.
In the first graphic below I ask "How can we do this better?" That refers to helping kids in poverty move through school, or to any other problem we're facing.
In the following sections I point to on-line libraries where information can be found and used to innovate local and global solutions.
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Use this newsletter as a study guide.
The ideas and resources shared in this monthly newsletter point to a library of resources that can be used by anyone, in Chicago, or around the world, to help mentor-rich youth programs thrive in all of the neighborhoods where they are most needed.
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Where can you find ideas?
While I point to the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC web site as a rich resource, within my library I point to other sites which not only are also rich resources, but have more updated, interactive websites, making the information easier to find. Below are a few of those places.
If you know of interactive web libraries that you find useful, please share a link with me on Twitter, Facebook and/or Linkedin. Let's try to draw more users to all of them.
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Digital Promise - learning issues
Over 500 public school and district staff members—including teachers, principals, superintendents, and others—from across the U.S. responded to a survey sharing their highest-priority challenges in education. Each circle in this interactive graphic represents a single challenge. Visit the website. Click here.
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"Whatever community you are in, you are bound to find something parallel and worth digging into."
That's the premise behind the Education Reimagined organization and website.
Open this link and view the interactive map showing six categories of learning environments, representing ideas that people from anyplace can draw from to improve their own.
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This is one of the most extensive, interactive web libraries that I've found recently. It looks like you need to subscribe to use it (not the case a year ago).
However, it's a rich resource. On this page they show the Sustainable Development Goals. Click on any box and go deeper into the library.
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Center for American Progress
The graphic above shows the ISSUES page on the Center for American Progress website. Click on any of the categories and the site takes you into articles related to that issue. If you do search for "Center for American Progress" on the Tutor/Mentor blog you find three articles. In 2012 I pointed to a blog article about collective impact on their website.
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Digital Access and Digital Divide
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Sustainable Development Goals
The SDGs a re a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and improve the lives and prospects of everyone, everywhere.
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Systems Thinking offers a way to reach a shared understanding about complex issues.
At this link I point to an article titled "Covid-19 means systems thinking is no longer optional." The article includes excellent descriptions of what systems thinking is and applies this thinking to the Covid-19 pandemic.
See blog article where I applied this thinking to work needed to help kids in poverty areas move through school and into adult lives.
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The on-going challenge of funding the work
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Any efforts to solve complex problems are more difficult because of the difficult of finding on-going operating dollars. The traditional philanthropy and government grant process causes competition for funding, which is theoretically good, since the best ideas get funded.
However, as I wrote in this article, when multiple organizations doing similar work are needed in many places, such as non-school tutor/mentor programs in Chicago and other cities, a system that only funds a few, and does not encourage (and fund) constant improvement, reaches only a few of the people who need help.
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Below are resources to use to help youth in your community.
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Resources from Tutor/Mentor:
* List of Chicago area youth Tutor and/or Mentor programs, plus other resources for finding youth programs - click here* Facebook pages of Chicago area youth programs - click here* Instagram pages of Chicago area youth programs - click here* Tutor/Mentor Library - This blog article shows short links to each section in Tutor/Mentor library and to concept maps and PDF strategy presentations - click here* Hashtags I follow on Twitter. Use to expand your own network - click here
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While I point to the same sites each month, they update on their sites regularly.
* Philanthropy and Covid-19: Measuring One Year of Giving. Issue Lab report. pdf. click here* National Mentoring Resource Center - Covid-19 resources - click here* MyChiMyFuture - City of Chicago - visit site and find activities for youth - click here* Incarceration Reform Resource Center - click here* ChiHackNight - remote civic technology meet-up; every Tuesday in Chicago - see weekly agenda
*Chicago Youth Serving Organizations in Intermediary Roles-click here
Please help update this cMap and the links in the Tutor/Mentor web library. Just email me with additions or changes.
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About this newsletter.
While I try to send this only once a month, I write blog articles weekly. Throughout the newsletter I post links to a few of the articles published in the past month or earlier. I encourage you to spend a little time each week reading these articles and following the links. Use the ideas and presentations in group discussions with other people who are concerned about the same issues.
Encourage friends, family, co-workers to sign up to receive this newsletter. Click here.
(If you subscribe, don't forget to respond to the confirmation email)
Thank you for reading and sharing the ideas in this newsletter.
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Tutor/Mentor Connection, Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC
Merchandise Mart PO Box 3303, Chicago, Il 60654
Thank you for reading. And thank you to those who help fund the
Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC and this newsletter. Contributions always welcome. Click here.
Connect with Dan (tutormentor) on one of these social media platforms.
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2021 Tutor/Mentor eNewsletters 
