Home 2021 Tutor/Mentor eNewsletters March 2021 Tutor/Mentor eNews
March 2021 Tutor/Mentor eNews
March 2021 - Issue 198
Building Network of Support for Youth
Is the pandemic almost over? Maybe by next fall? How has this affected the availability of non-school, volunteer-based tutor, mentor and learning programs in high poverty neighborhoods of Chicago and other cities? What will program design look like in the future?

These are things I write about in the Tutor/Mentor blog and that I share in this monthly newsletter.

If you are writing about these strategies on blogs or in program websites, please share the link with me on one of the social media platforms I point to.
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.

If you are a consistent reader, consider a contribution to help fund the Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC
What will youth programs look like after Covid19?

Prior to Covid19 many site-based tutor/mentor programs had computers where youth and volunteers could sit side-by-side doing research for school papers, homework and/or current events. For the past year these two people have been in different places, yet still connected via the computer to each other, and resources on-line.

Here's an article written following the 2021 Mentoring Summit with 5 tips for building an e-Mentoring strategy into a site-based program.

And, here are links to eMentor/Tutor programs to learn from. Use these in planning for post Covid activities.


How has Pandemic Affected Youth Serving Organizations?

Last August I shared an invitation for youth program leaders to talk to the team at Great Lakes Growth Works, a consulting firm in Michigan, about how the pandemic was affecting them.

They published this blog article on March 15, with their summary of those conversations. Among those interviewed were leaders from Highsight Chicago and A Better Chicago.

Read the blog to see the key takeaways, challenges and supports needed.
Racial Equity Data

Data maps can be used to support decision makers in government, business and philanthropy. However, many maps have been built without a racial equity lens. For many years, I've used the cMap shown below to point to data platforms in my library and to blog articles where I've included maps. I updated it recently to add a section of links to websites that focus on racial equity in data (see node in upper right). These include:

* Tableau Foundation Racial Equity Data Hub - click here
* Urban Institute's Racial Equity Analytics Lab - click here
* We All Count - a project to increase equity in data science - click here

View the concept map here. If you're using maps in blog articles to inform public opinion or build donor support for specific areas, please share you articles on Twitter, Facebook and/or Linkedin.

I keep adding new links to the Tutor/Mentor library and this concept map. One area where I'd like to find better data maps is in mapping of philanthropic and government funding. If you know of such platforms please send me the link.
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If we want to help more kids living in poverty areas move through school what do we need to know?

The data from Covid19 and before shows that poverty is a major contributor to the challenges many youth face in moving safely from birth to work. This is not a new revelation. It's been clear for many decades. And while billions of dollars have been spent on education efforts, and on non-school programs, the problem still persists for many kids in many places.

So what are we missing? I think we're missing a comprehensive and on-going strategy. As I've led the Tutor/Mentor Connection (1993-present) and Tutor/Mentor Institute, LLC (2011-present) I've had a lot of time to think about this. I started using visualizations in the 1990s and concept maps in 2005 to share my thinking.

Below is one concept map that shows a sequence of thoughts, starting with "we need organized youth programs in more places" to "we need to find ways to build and sustain public will, and funding, that reaches youth programs in EVERY high poverty neighborhood.

This is just my thinking. I encourage others to create their own concept maps. You can see my entire library at this link.
What are all the things we need to be thinking of is we want youth tutor mentor programs in all high poverty areas of Chicago.
I'm passing on this request from a mentoring Research Project at Johns Hopkins University

"Are you interested in participating in a research study with Johns Hopkins University? We need mentors and mentees from across the U.S. to pilot test our new app for one month! The app is designed to support the mentors of young African American men who have a sexual interest in men. All participants will receive a gift card as well as a chance to win tickets to an event of their choice. Please contact Kate Wright, the Study Coordinator, for more information."

Below are resources to use to help youth in your community.

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

* Strategy PDFs by Tutor/Mentor - click here

* Concept Map library - click here

* Mapping for Justice blog - 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

* Blogs I follow using Inoreader - click here
* Philanthropy and Covid-19: Measuring One Year of Giving. IssueLab 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

* Strengthening Chicago Youth web site, click here; blog - click here

* Chicago Mentoring Collaborative - click here

* To & Through Project web site - click here

* Chicago Learning Exchange - 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.
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.

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Thank you for reading and sharing the ideas in this newsletter.
 
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