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A child at loose ends needs help, and someone steps in--a Big Brother, a Big Sister, a mentor from the growing ranks of volunteers offering their time and guidance to more than two million American adolescents. Does it help? How effective are mentoring programs, and how do they work? Are there pitfalls, and if so, what are they? Such questions, ever more pressing as youth mentoring initiatives expand their reach at a breakneck pace, have occupied Jean Rhodes for more than a decade. In this provocative, thoroughly researched, and lucidly written book, Rhodes offers readers the benefit of the latest findings in this burgeoning field, including those from her own extensive, groundbreaking studies.

Outlining a model of youth mentoring that will prove invaluable to the many administrators, caseworkers, volunteers, and researchers who seek reliable information and practical guidance, Stand by Me describes the extraordinary potential that exists in such relationships, and discloses the ways in which nonparent adults are uniquely positioned to encourage adolescent development. Yet the book also exposes a rarely acknowledged risk: unsuccessful mentoring relationships--always a danger when, in a rush to form matches, mentors are dispatched with more enthusiasm than understanding and preparation--can actually harm at-risk youth. Vulnerable children, Rhodes demonstrates, are better left alone than paired with mentors who cannot hold up their end of the relationships.

Drawing on work in the fields of psychology and personal relations, Rhodes provides concrete suggestions for improving mentoring programs and creating effective, enduring mentoring relationships with youth.

Customer Reviews (7)

Excellent, practical, informative
Very well written. Based on what appears to be a pretty thorough review of the available literature, but written in a manner that is digestable for a wide variety of audiences. Covers most major topics, from match to closure. Discusses variable associated with effective programs and matches.

Risks and Rewards, by an Expert in the Field
Dr. Rhodes knows her stuff, and beyond her interest in facts, figures and statistics you get the feeling she actually cares about youth in a one to one way, not just in hundreds of thousands.When she says that there are two million teens involved in some sort of mentoring program, it makes you feel sad about the millions more who need such a program and yet don't have the means or incentive to discover it for themselves.For, as her research shows, such programs are often of great benefit to the youths, who would grow up with twisted morality or stunted social values without mentoring.

And yet there is a dark side to this happy story, for all too often (says Dr. Rhodes) there may be a boy or girl whose psyche is not helped at all by tutoring (or mentoring) and who may be poorly matched with someone who really owly cares for them to the extent that they can feel good about themselves and tell their friends around the water cooler, "Oh, I helped my Little Brother this weekend," when really all he did was perhaps drive him to an arcade and give him a ten dollar bill telling the boy to enjoy himself.Such mentoring does not help--and even worse, this may hurt the kids.For young people are not cogs in a mechanical wheel, and they do not have interchangeable parts.In this way adolescence has bypassed modernism, and it is time the sociologists realized it.

Dr. Rhodes follows correct protocols, and yet she still believes in the sanctity of the individual personality--you might even say, the "soul" of the at-risk teen.

Mentoring and the benefits for everyone
As someone who was searching for a book on mentoring young students this book helps put things into perspective.Ms. Rhodes explains the benefits of the youth needing to be helped and those who help them. Rhodes examines the psychological process behind mentoring. She expands upon the bonds that develops between mentors and youth, what they bring to the process and what they get out of it, and the important role adults who are not their parents can play in the development of children. A lot of us know that mentoring is important but she brings the facts to life. She explains the need to take great care when deciding to be a mentor or not, infact she says do not become a mentor if your heart is not completely into it.

She uses many different thoriest to prove her points and help you better understand why young people need to be mentored, reguradless of their backgrounds.I thought that I knew a lot about the benefits of mentoring the young, but she clarifies why the young need the mentoring and why there is a stronger need for mentors these days. She explains that there are more single parent or duel working parents and therefore there is less adult child relationships within the family. She tells us of the importance of mentorsto help the young become better people by basing their decisions on good role models and not just their friends.

A sane and scientific approach to understanding mentoring
Jean Rhodes, professor of psychology at UMass-Boston and former faculty member at Harvard and UChicago, has written the most thorough book to date about the mentoring process. Employing superb research skills and accessible language for both a professional and lay audience, she captures some of the essential components of mentoring that we as a society need to discuss from both a public policy perspective and a psychological care approach. Her analysis and discussion of ten years of empirical research help support her arguement with essential data that adds to the growing body of knowledge on mentoring. This is a book for community activists, religious leaders, social scientists and concerned citizens.
PM Camic, PhD, Professor of Psychology and Education, Columbia College Chicago

Terrific book for mentors, community leaders, educators!
This is a timely, in-depth book that really gives folks a perspective of the joys and challenges of mentoring. Superb resource and important data for all to see! I highly recommend this book for anyone who understands or wishes to understand the relevance of youth mentoring. ... Read more

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Mentoring has become an almost essential aspect of youth development and is expanding beyond the traditional one-to-one, volunteer, community-based mentoring. This volume provides evidence of the benefits of enduring high-quality mentoring programs, as well as apprenticeships, advisories, and other relationship-based programs that show considerable promise. Authors examine mentoring in the workplace, teacher-student interaction, and the mentoring potential of student advising programs. They also take a critical look at the importance of youth-adult relationships and how a deeper understanding of these relationships can benefit youth mentoring. This issue raises important questions about relationship-based interventions and generates new perspectives on the role of adults in the lives of youth. ... Read more

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Engaging youth in civic life has become a central concern to a broad array of researchers in a variety of academic fields as well to policy makers and practitioners globally. This book is both international and multidisciplinary, consisting of three sections that respectively cover conceptual issues, developmental and educational topics, and methodological and measurement issues. Broad in its coverage of topics, this book supports scholars, philanthropists, business leaders, government officials, teachers, parents, and community practitioners in their drive to engage more young people in community and civic actions. ... Read more

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The Handbook of Youth Mentoring provides the first scholarly and comprehensive synthesis of current theory, research, and practice in the field of youth mentoring. Editors David L. DuBois and Michael J. Karcher, along with leading experts in the field, offer critical and informative analyses of the full spectrum of topics that are essential to advancing our understanding of the principles for effective mentoring of young people. The Handbook explores not only mentoring that occurs within formal programs such as Big Brothers Big Sisters, but also examines natural mentoring relationships that youth establish with adults outside of such programs.

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Positive Sports shows the giving side of professional sports and how it leaves a lasting impact on our communities. Read about:
· Individuals who were inspired by sport: Canadian Football League player Garry Sawatzky shows how football changed his life from being a convicted murderer to becoming a strong member of the community.
· League-driven community programs: Hockey Canada’s Initiation Program instills a grassroots skills-first philosophy that leads to success at the international level.
· Professional sports role models: CFL Legend Mark McLoughlin fosters a Stay In School program and visits over 100 schools per year to talk about the importance of education. NHL goalie and Japanese-Canadian Jamie Storr holds an annual summer hockey school that celebrates pride in one’s heritage – something he was challenged with as a youth. NBA star Jalen Rose starts a foundation to support single parent families and assist children with their primary education. NHL good guy Jarome Iginla starts a hockey school through the NHL Diversity program and donates $1000 to KidSport Calgary for every goal he scores during a season. NBA forward Tyson Chandler helps pay gas bills for low-income Chicago families and partners with firefighters to fit homes with smoke detectors. ... Read more

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High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Youth mentoring is the process of matching mentors with young people who need or want a caring, responsible adult in their lives. Adult mentors are usually unrelated to the child or teen and work as volunteers through a community-, school-, or church-based social service program. Although informal mentoring relationships exist, formal, high-quality mentoring matches made through local or state mentoring organizations are often the most effective. In 2002, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences published a major report examining after-school and other community programs designed to foster positive youth development. The report concluded that very few after-school programs "have received the kind of comprehensive experimental evaluation necessary to make a firm recommendation about replicating the program in its entirety across the country." However, the report singled out mentoring programs modeled after the Big Brothers Big Sisters mentoring program as a rare exception, and recommended its widespread replication. ... Read more

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This digital document is an article from Reclaiming Children and Youth, published by Reclaiming Children and Youth on September 22, 2009. The length of the article is 2843 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Campus kids mentoring program: fifteen years of success.
Author: Jerri Shepard
Publication: Reclaiming Children and Youth (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 22, 2009
Publisher: Reclaiming Children and Youth
Volume: 18Issue: 3Page: 38(6)

Distributed by Gale, a part of Cengage Learning ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Personal Experience
This mentoring program will change the lives of all involved. Not only will the youth of your church be touched by the love and attention from caring adult mentors but the mentors will also find a blessing beyond measure! This ministry gives a lasting purpose to all lives involved. ... Read more