May 08, 2025, Durham, NC – Years of research and experience in the field of youth mentoring have uncovered some of the best strategies for supporting children and adolescents. Youth mentoring programs pair youth, called mentees, with a supportive and caring adult, called mentors, so they may be able to provide youth with a positive role model, social connectedness and a sense of belonging, and skills development. Mentoring program staff, experts, and researchers have learned many lessons from decades of developing best practices in the field of mentoring, which may be insightful for any organization that aims to support youth and their well-being. Below, read some lessons learned in the field of mentoring that may help your organization thrive:
- Evidence-based training and programs are key.
Within the mentoring field, researchers and professionals have found that providing mentoring program staff, mentors, mentees, and parents of mentees with web-based training programs before and/or during the mentoring relationship can directly impact mentee outcomes, volunteer retention, and mentors’ feelings of satisfaction and self-efficacy as a mentor. Similarly, implementing web-based programs designed to promote youth well-being in your organization can help you drive positive change in the lives of youth you serve. For example, iRT has developed several web-based programs to prevent youth substance use, promote sexual health in young people, help youth manage stress, and prevent violence. Your organization should choose a program that best meets the needs of youth in your community. If you are looking for web-based programs to supplement your organization’s efforts to promote youth well-being, it is essential to choose a program that is based on empirical research. Choosing an evidence-based program can help you feel confident that the intervention you chose will have a positive influence on your organization and the youth you serve. For more information on iRT’s evidence-based programs designed to support youth, families, and organizations like yours, visit https://irtinc.us/products/.
- Maximize results by addressing all working parts of your organization’s system.
An effective, evidence-based strategy for developing and maintaining an effective mentoring program that is widely accepted in the field of mentoring is supporting all of the “working parts” in the program. In other words, mentoring programs may be more likely to produce positive outcomes for mentees when mentoring program staff, volunteer mentors, mentees, and parents or caregivers of mentees are all on the same page, prepared for the mentoring experience, and supported by the program. A common way that mentoring programs are able to achieve this is by providing tailored training for mentees, mentors, staff, and parents, so they understand their unique role in the mentoring program and how to contribute to positive outcomes.
Like mentoring programs, supporting all of the working parts in your youth-serving program or organization may help set up your organization for success. To assess if your organization is supporting everyone involved, ask yourself the following questions:
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- Does my organization have a thorough onboarding process for all new staff members and volunteers that ensures that they are qualified and prepared to contribute to the organization and its goals?
- What do youth need to know to be prepared and comfortable communicating or working with staff and volunteers in my organization? How can I prepare them?
- Are youth caregivers involved in my organization’s support system, and if so, how can I prepare them to take part in the process?
Making sure everyone knows their roles, expectations for being involved with your organization, skills to communicate with others in your organization, and policies and strategies to keep everyone safe will help everyone involved contribute their part to promoting positive outcomes for youth.
- When all else fails, remember support can be simple.
Taking on the responsibility to provide a child or teen with support to help them achieve better outcomes can be daunting. When first signing up to mentor a child, many mentors feel afraid that they are not equipped to help their mentee achieve their unique goals. They may fear that they do not know the right words to say, they do not have any advice to give to their mentee, or they do not have any experience that may be relevant or helpful to their mentee. Staff members of organizations that support youth may relate to the fear that they may not be able to help a child or teen because they do not have it “all together” themselves.
Fortunately, research and experience from professionals and volunteers in the mentoring field has shown that having the right advice or having a perfect lifestyle is not the key to helping youth succeed. Instead, simply showing up for a child, listening to them, and helping them feel that they can rely on you to emotionally support them can have positive impacts on them. Letting youth share their own experiences and opinions can help them feel a sense of trust, safety, and self-agency. Youth can use their newfound confidence to work towards their goals to achieve better outcomes. In addition, supportive adults or mentors can express their support for the child as they explore their own ideas and confidence, so the child feels that they have someone in their “corner” to cheer them on and help them through challenges. Alternatively, when a mentor or other trusted adult consistently tries to assert their own opinions on a child, whether intentionally or unintentionally, the child may feel like they are being scolded and/or lose confidence in themselves and motivation to work towards their goals. Empowering youth to use their own voice and developing a youth-centered mindset can help children and teens feel supported to work towards their goals on their own and reduce feelings of shame or decrease in motivation when they make mistakes.
If you feel that your organization is falling behind or that you are not equipped with the resources to be successful, it is helpful to remember that your organization may be helping youth by simply giving them a safe space to be themselves and be emotionally supported.
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