As many of you are aware, during this 2008-9 academic year Smart Futures piloted the rollout of a “souped up” version of our PA eMentoring program, an online college and career mentoring program for high school students that has the potential to engage large numbers of employers, high schools, and community based organizations in an easy, fun process that yields personalized College and Career Plans for 500 participating mentees.
Central to the project’s success is the adaptation of a 10-module curriculum, aligned to the PA Academic Standards for Career Education and Work, that guides the communication between mentor and mentee, as well as technology upgrades that allow for sophisticated program monitoring and built-in program evaluation.
Key partners in the project include 27 schools districts/schools including Pittsburgh Public Schools, 200 employers including UPMC, American Eagle, and Highmark, and intermediaries the Pittsburgh Regional Compact and the Mentoring Partnership. A full list of participating schools and employers is available at www.pa-ementor.org. The pilot is being supported by local funders including Pittsburgh Foundation, Highmark Healthy High Five Foundation, Buhl Foundation, Grable Foundation, BYN Mellon, Benedum Foundation, Duquesne Light and NexTier.
The pilot has sought to address the core obstacles inherent with expanding traditional mentoring programs: Could enough mentors be recruited? Would mentors see the online relationship as meaningful? Could the mentoring program be implemented easily within a classroom? Would the curriculum enhance the quality and flow of communication? Would the mentee perceive their relationship with their mentor as valuable? Could the process be monitored and evaluated to assure quality outcomes?
I am happy to report that the 2008-9 PA eMentoring rollout is meeting its major goals. Over 500 students have been matched one-to-one with mentors and during a 10-12 week process they have together discussed core issues related to college and career success. The conversations and activities have lead to the creation of a personalized college and career plan for each mentee.
Below is a summary of results from the teacher, mentor and student surveys that have been conducted for the 2008-9 PA eMentoring program.
• 100% of teachers said the program was valuable
• 100% of teachers plan to use PA eMentoring again next year
• 100% of teachers said they plan on expanding the program next year within their schools
• 100% of teachers said that they their district would be willing to pay a portion of program costs next year
• 20% more students are considering 2-year education as a primary option vs. 4-year education
• Over 50% of students and mentors feel it has helped mentees’ writing skills
• 70% of students said the program helped them understand courses that would help them in their future career
• There was a 10% gain in number of students who felt very confident that in 10 years they will have a well-paying job that they enjoy
• Over 70% of students said the program helped them understand future career options
• 80% of students said they felt the program helped them better understand future college and training needed for different careers.
• 90% of mentors feel they contributed to the community
• 90% of mentors feel they positively impacted their mentee’s college and career decision making process
• 80% of students said they felt they had an improved support system via their mentor
• 100% of mentors re-enrolled for 2nd semester
• 80% of mentors rated the quality of their communication with their mentee as good or excellent; only 15% rated it as satisfactory
What’s next? The pilot results to date leave us hopeful and excited about the prospect of expanding PA eMentoring within existing schools and to new schools throughout the region, and even the Commonwealth. As a result, Smart Futures is seeking to expand the program to reach 15,000 young adults over the next 2 years. We will seek $300,000 of program funding to support the expansion next year to help underwrite the cost for the schools. After 2 years, we anticipate that the program will be fully supported through a combination of school fees and corporate contributions.
We would love to have you involved in our expansion the program. One of the most important ways you can help is by helping us recruit mentors (even volunteer yourself?) so that we can meet the huge demand in the schools for the program.
David J. Mosey, Executive Director, Smart Futures