Note: Many of the youth program blogs on this list are archives. They show what's possible with a blog. If you are aware of Chicago or national tutor/mentor programs blogs, send a link and description to the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC>

100 BLACK MEN OF CHICAGO MENTORING BLOG
https://100bmc.org/mentoring/
Follow this blog and learn more of their mentoring strategy and activities.

A MENTORS BLOG - POLISHED PEBBLES
https://kellyfairthementor.com/
Kelly Fair is founder and leader of Polished Pebbles in Chicago. She uses her blog to educate, inspire and promote the work her organization is doing.

A NEW VOICE FROM ENGLEWOOD (CHICAGO)
http://mrsenglewood.blogspot.com/
This is an example of how one person can write articles that draw attention to a neighborhood, and to the organizations working to help youth and families in the neighborhood.   Youth and adults from many neighborhoods could take this role.

ALL STARS PROJECT BLOG
https://gabriellekurlander.wordpress.com/
This is blog by Gabrielle L. Kurlander, founder and leader of the All Stars Project, which grew from a grassroots all-volunteer effort in the early 2000s,  into a new national model for engaging poverty through afterschool development and community organizing.

BECOMING WE THE PEOPLE BLOG - 2010-11 ARCHIVE
https://becomingwethepeople.wordpress.com/category/uncategorized/
This blog was written by Jordan Hesterman who was an active participant in the Chicago Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conferences between 2011 and 2015.

BEST PRACTICES IN MENTORING - EDITORIAL IN "THE MENTOR NEWS"
https://us6.campaign-archive.com/?u=15a0d2ac5bc4aa7d41ef32a3c&id=af58552b47&e=5a00000326
Peer Resources publishes a monthly newsletter which has many resources mentoring and coaching leaders should value. In this issue the feature editorial offers some stimulating thinking about best practices.

BEYOND MENTORING: ENGAGING MENTORS TO SUPPORT RECRUITMENT, FUNDRAISING AND BEYOND (VIDEO)
https://youtu.be/ygC0air3yII
This interactive 2016 National Mentoring Summit workshop by Mentoring Colorado provided participants with an understanding of how mentors can support program needs through fundraising, volunteer recruitment, advocacy and other initiatives.


BLOG ARTICLES FROM 2008-09 BY NUPIP FELLOW AT TUTOR/MENTOR CONNECTION
http://chrispip.blogspot.com/2009/07/concept-mapping-my-blog.html
From July 2008 through July 2009 Chris Warren served for one year in a Northwestern University Public Service Program fellowship at Cabrini Connections, Tutor/Mentor Connection. Chris wrote articles profiling the students and volunteers at Cabrini Connections and making sense of the ideas of the Tutor/Mentor Connection. Some of these can be read from year-to-year and used in many places.  I hope you find them valuable.

BOREN MENTORING INITIATIVE (OKLAHOMA) BLOG
http://okmentor.blogspot.com/
This blog was written from 2012 to 2018 to support, and communicate ideas about, youth mentoring in Oklahoma.

CABRINI CONNECTIONS BLOG - 2006-JULY 2011
http://cabriniblog.blogspot.com/
This blog was used from 2006-2011 to coach the students, volunteers and donors of Cabrini Connections, which operates in Chicago. This program was operating as a sister project to the Tutor/Mentor Connection during that time. You'll see that while we talked about a single program in many of our articles we used this to make a case for more consistent support for ALL tutor/mentor programs in the Chicago region and in other cities. Note the links on the right side to blogs written by students and volunteers in the program.

COMMUNITY FOR YOUTH - SEATTLE
https://www.communityforyouth.org/blog/
CfY is a one-on-one mentoring program serving teens in Seattle. 

FEMI MEMORIAL OUTREACH - CHICAGO YOUTH ORG BLOG
http://femioutreach.blogspot.com/
Femi Memorial Outreach uses its blog "to reach out to students, families, and those devoted to learning about public education in the city of Chicago". The last post is from 2017.

GET IN CHICAGO BLOG ARTICLES - CITY INITIATIVE TO LEARN FROM
https://getinchicagoblog.wordpress.com/
Get In Chicago is a $50 million anti-violence commitment focused on a few Chicago neighborhoods. 

May 2020 T/MI editor note:  This blog is an archive. No new posts since 2016.  This initiative was launched with huge business and civic leadership support but it's not clear how active it is in 2020, just 4 years later. The lesson to leaders is that "if you start something like this, keep it going".

GLOBAL CITIZENSHIP CHARTER SCHOOL - FIELD EXPERIENCES
https://gcelabschool.org/field-experiences/
From the website: “At the conclusion of every course, students demonstrate mastery and understanding through final projects. These projects are compiled into a digital portfolio that provides students with a showcase of their high school work that can be shared with colleges and employers.” This is not exactly a blog, but serves the same purpose.  Note: GCE Lab School closed in June 2023.

GR8 MATES YOUTH MENTOR PROGRAM BLOG
http://gr8matesmentor.blogspot.com/
This blog was written from 2007 to 2009 by Robin Cox, a veteran mentoring leader and consultant, based in Australia. While it's now an archive, it's still full of great ideas that leaders of other tutor/mentor programs can draw from.

GREAT LIFE MENTORING BLOG - CLARK COUNTY, WA
https://greatlifementoring.com/blog/
This is a blog by a mentoring program that started in 2000 in Clark County, WA.

I-MENTOR CHICAGO BLOG
https://imentor.org/social-hub/blog
From the web site: "iMentor matches every student in partner high schools with a committed college-educated mentor, equipped to guide that young person on their journey to college graduation."

INSTITUTO DEL PROGRESO LATINO
https://www.institutochicago.org/apps/news/category/4201
From the website: “Our mission is to contribute to the fullest development of Latino immigrants and their families through education, training and employment that fosters full participation in the changing United States society while preserving cultural identity and dignity.”

INTERNS-TUTOR/MENTOR CONNECTION BLOG
http://michaelcnt.blogspot.com/
This blog was started in 2006 by a Tutor/Mentor Connection intern from Hong Kong. It's been used since to showcase work other interns have done since 2006 to share ideas and strategies of the Tutor/Mentor Connection and Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC.

INVISIBLE CHILDREN BLOG
https://invisiblechildren.com/blog/
This is an organization based in the US who work to support children in Africa. This description is from their web site: "Half our work happens on the ground in Central Africa, and the other half happens in the United States.  In Central Africa, all of our programming is a partnership between Invisible Children and LRA-affected communities. We focus on long-term goals that enable children to take responsibility for their futures and the futures of their countries. Our programs are carefully developed initiatives that address the need for quality education, mentorships, the redevelopment of schools, and financial stability.  Our work in the United States focuses on advocacy and inspiring America’s youth to “do more than just watch.” We believe that by uniting our voices we can use the systems, influence, and resources of the United States to expedite an end to the conflict."

JUMP START
https://www.jstart.org/resources/blog/
From the website: “Jump Start seeks to help children from under-resourced communities receive individualized attention before they enter kindergarten, giving them the critical academic and social skills—the ‘jumpstart’—they need to succeed.”


MALE MOGUL INITIATIVE BLOG
https://malemogulinitiative.org/?page_id=8116
The Male Mogul Initiative was started by Walter Mendenhall, a former NFL football player.  The initiative seeks to transform under resourced communities by offering youth and returning citizens leadership and entrepreneurial training.  This link points to the blog articles on their website.


MAPPINGFORJUSTICE BLOG
http://mappingforjustice.blogspot.com
The mappingforjustice blog was started in 2008 by the Tutor/Mentor Connection to share maps about poverty, inequality and youth tutor/mentor programs in the Chicago region. Since 2011 it's also been used to point to data mapping platforms being created by others in Chicago and around the world.

MATH CIRCLES OF CHICAGO BLOG
https://mathcirclesofchicago.org/blog/
From the website: "Math Circles of Chicago provides free programs outside of regular school hours. Our priority is to provide equitable access to those students living in Chicago and attending public schools." Read their blog articles to learn more. 

MENTOR NEBRASKA BLOG - READ ABOUT THEIR MAPPING PROJECT
https://www.mentornebraska.org/category/blog/
MentorNebraska supports more than 60 mentoring programs throughout the state.  Follow their blog to learn from their efforts. 


SUNSHINE GOSPEL MINISTRIES BLOG
https://www.sunshinegospel.org/news
Sunshine Gospel Ministries' youth outreach programs serve elementary, middle, and high school ages. Each program provides students with a structured after-school environment that promotes positive values and fosters a commitment to learning.

THE BASE - SPORTS AND MENTORING.  
https://thebase.org/stories/
From the web site; "The BASE, founded in 2013, combines exceptional baseball and softball training and competition with academic and career resources to empower student-athletes to achieve their full potential both on and off the field." Operates in Boston, Pittsburgh and Chicago. 


THE MENTORING EFFECT - BLOG FROM MENTOR
https://www.mentoring.org/what-we-do/blog/
This is a blog hosted by MENTOR, intending to "more deeply explore the findings of our Mentoring Effect report, published in January 2014!"

TUTOR MENTOR AFRICA
http://tutormentorafrica.blogspot.com/
This blog was launched in 2006 borrowing from ideas shared by the Tutor/Mentor Connection in Chicago. While I've continued to encourage this program to use this blog to share it's stories it has not been able to do so. It is now an archive.

TUTORMENTORCONNECTION.NING.COM BLOG LIST
https://tutormentorconnection.ning.com/profiles/blog/list
The Tutor/Mentor Connection established a community on Ning.com in 2007. Members each were able to post ideas using the blog on their personal pages. These are aggregated on this link.

TUTOR/MENTOR BLOG SHARES STRATEGY IDEAS THAT CAN BE USED ANYWHERE
Http://tutormentor.blogspot.com
This is the primary blog by Dr. Daniel F. Bassill, President, CEO of the Tutor/Mentor Connection and Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC, which is the owner and content curator of this website and library.  The first article was posted in 2005 and the blog is still active in 2022.

URBAN ALLIANCE BLOG
https://theurbanalliance.org/blog/
From the website: “Urban Alliance is building a diverse next-generation workforce by providing job skills training, mentoring, and paid internships to high school youth from under-resourced communities, predominantly youth of color. Since 1996, we’ve provided over 6,000 internships to youth across greater Washington, DC (including Montgomery County and Prince George’s County, MD, and Northern Virginia), Baltimore, Chicago, and Detroit.”

URBAN GATEWAYS BLOG
https://urbangateways.org/category/blog/
From the website: Through artist residencies, performances, apprenticeships, and other activities, Urban Gateways helps young people acquire and refine artistic skills, share their talents, engage in critical thinking, explore new possibilities, and contribute to the civic discourse of our society.”

URBAN INITIATIVES (CHICAGO) - YOUTH SOCCER PROGRAM BLOG
https://www.urbaninitiatives.org/news/
Read about the way this organization uses soccer in its youth development. Programs offered via public schools. The organization uses it's blog to provide information showing impact and why it is needed. Good model for other organizations.

WORKING IN THE SCHOOLS (WITS) CHICAGO BLOG
https://witschicago.org/blog
Working in the Schools has connected volunteers with elementary age youth in Chicago for 29 years (as of 2020). Read ideas they share on their blog