Build the network. Connect the Network. Nudge the Network....Role of Intermediaries.

It's February, which is Black History Month. I point to my library of resources in this issue, but also emphasize that with this information on the Internet, learners of any age and any place, can access it throughout the year.

It's also a month when volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs who started in September are looking for new volunteers to replace those who dropped out over the year-end break. And it's time to begin expanding volunteer involvement so you have help when you start your program again next fall.

I only send this newsletter once a month.

It's full of links, so save it and refer to it throughout the month. Use the ideas and resources to help you build and sustain mentor-rich, school and non-school, tutor, mentor and learning programs that reach K-12 youth in all areas of persistent poverty. These resources can be used by anyone, in Chicago, or around the world.

Please share this so others in your city can find and use these resources!

The top concept map (at this link) shows the resources in the "homework help" section of the Tutor/Mentor Library. One node points to my list of Black History resources (click here).

The second concept map (click here) shows another section of the Tutor/Mentor library, with links to websites that provide a deeper understanding of the systemic barriers put in place over many decades that make it more difficult for Black Americans, poor people and other minorities to have equal opportunities.

Many of the websites I point to are extensive libraries themselves. Think of this as a vast on-line shopping center for information that you can use to help people overcome challenges and help make the world a better, safer, healthier place for everyone.

This concept map (click here) points to Chicago area volunteer based tutor, mentor and learning programs in the Tutor/Mentor Library and to other resources that you can use to find volunteers for programs in any city in the country.

In the middle of the concept map I show lists that point to accounts of Chicago tutor/mentor programs on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. So far I don't find many programs using Mastodon, or BlueSky, but I encourage you to read this Edutopia article about using BlueSky.

Or, read this article titled "The growth of charity BlueSky - November 2024"

Who is doing capacity-building research about youth serving programs in America? Where is this being discussed in on-line forums?

What did Chicago area tutor/mentor program leaders tell us were the "most critical resources needed in their programs"?

From 2000 to 2003 a survey was provided during the Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conferences, held in Chicago and organized by the Tutor/Mentor Connection. This PDF is a summary of findings. "People" and "Resources" were the most needed resources.

"People" included tutor/mentor volunteers, and other volunteers who help programs operate and grow, along with paid staff.

"Resources" included paid staff, money/funding that supports the program, technology, training materials, space for operations, etc.

By building and sharing a list of Chicago area volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs since 1994 the Tutor/Mentor Connection and Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC have been trying to help programs throughout the region get these resources.

But we never have had the resources needed to continue this survey or dig deeper into the information we were collecting. In this blog article I show how we were reaching out to universities to take that role. So far, without consistent success.

Get to know the resources available in the Tutor/Mentor library.

Below is the first page a visual essay in the Tutor/Mentor library that provides a tour of the website which I've used since 1998 to share ideas and information that anyone can use to help kids and families in high poverty areas and to solve complex problems.. Click here to view.

This link points to a set of Google slides that who sections of the resource library on the Tutor/Mentor website. This includes a list of more than 150 volunteer-based tutor, mentor and learning programs serving the Chicago region.

I've created these since the 1990s to try to help people understand the strategies I was sharing. From 2006 to 2015 interns from different colleges spent time looking at these and creating their own interpretations. This page has links to some of the work they did.

Students in any city, state and country could be doing the same type of investigation with the goal of applying the ideas to help youth in their own communities.

What's a Personal Learning Network? Where do you connect and learn on line?

Since the early 2000s I've tried to build on-line conversations where these issues were being discussed but again, with limited success, since staff, leaders, board members and donors of the majority of programs can't be found in the on-line platforms where many programs post information.

I think these habits need to be learned, beginning at an early age. Below is a concept map that I created in the late 2000s to visualize learning goals of the tutor/mentor program I was leading. Unfortunately I had to leave the program in 2011, too early for these habits to become embedded. Yet, I share them because in the world we're now living in it is more important than ever that young people and adults have sources of learning and communities of support. Those habits need to be modeled, mentored, taught and reinforced. Do you have this strategy embedded in your school and/or your own youth-serving program?

What's your planning calendar look like?

My email today included this article from the Chronicle of Evidence-Based Mentoring, titled "Rates of volunteerism are declining: What can mentoring programs do?" Start by reviewing your own program statistics. Are you growing? Declining? What do your volunteers tell you about why they stay, or why they leave? Then visit the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC website and look at the idea categories under 'Leadership strategies', 'Business involvement', 'Collaboration and Capacity Building' and 'Planning Strategies'.

Between now and June share these with your staff, volunteers and supporters. Start an on-going conversation, asking "What ideas can we apply to our own program?" and "How can we work with other programs in our city to increase business involvement, volunteer engagement and donor support?"

As you go into the summer you should have a list of ideas to apply as you start your program again in the fall and a few more people helping you implement those ideas. As you go through the next year, and the following years, build on what you are learning and constantly improve the impact of your organization.

Finally, share your own strategies, via a blog on your website, videos, social media and in person conversations. Help others learn from you while you learn from them.

Thank you for reading.

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.

I encourage others to duplicate what I'm doing. Write a blog and share your own vision, strategy and challenges. Share your link and I'll add it to this list in the Tutor/Mentor library.

View current and past newsletters at this link.

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