Park and recreation agencies are one of the largest providers of youth development services nationwide. They support young people’s health and wellbeing, create opportunities to build life skills, and facilitate the discovery of new interests. This January, we celebrate National Mentoring Month! National Mentoring Month is an annual opportunity to spread awareness of the power of mentoring and serves as a reminder of the critical role park and recreation professionals play in providing youth development and youth mentoring services in local communities.
According to NRPA’s 2021 Out-of-School Time Report, 37 percent of park and recreation agencies that offer out-of-school time programs provide mentoring services, with another 18 percent planning to add mentoring within the next two years. By developing 1:1 or group-based mentoring opportunities, more and more local park and recreation agencies are exploring mentoring as a tool to help youth develop positive connections with trusted and caring adults, which research shows can support their long-term success.
Implementing a mentoring program can be a powerful strategy to increase social-emotional learning and to counteract some of the impacts of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Increasingly, mentoring is combined with existing youth recreation programs such as sports, clubs or other out-of-school time programs. Mentoring happens every day, so identifying opportunities to intentionally incorporate mentoring principles into existing youth programs can be effective and practical.
So how are agencies doing this? Identifying caring adults to serve as mentors is a critical step to getting a mentoring program up and running. We asked park and recreation program staff how they recruit and engage mentors and found that most use three primary strategies:
1. Training recreation center staff/program staff
Mentoring happens every day in informal settings with coaches, activity leaders and other park and recreation staff. For agencies incorporating mentoring into existing youth programs or even starting a new program, hiring new mentors or recruiting volunteers is not always necessary. One agency we spoke to provided additional training to their rec center staff who now serve as mentors to a group of youth at each of their rec center locations. Another agency reported recruiting mentors from their seasonal staff to stay on with their program year-round.
2. Working with local universities and school districts
Working with local school districts can be effective for recruiting both mentors and mentees. Guidance counselors and teachers may be able to refer students to a program, and in some cases, school staff may be interested in serving as mentors. For programs that rely on volunteer mentors, consider recruiting college students who are involved with service clubs or sororities and fraternities. One agency shared an example of working with a professor to offer class credit to college students who serve as mentors in their program over a semester.
3. Partnering with community-based organizations, groups and businesses
Partnering with a community-based organization can be a successful strategy to reach different populations and combine resources to support youth. Some agencies report working with other organizations that are well-established in the mentoring space, such as Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Alternatively, service groups such as Rotary or the faith-based community can be a source of mentors, as well. Lastly, some agencies have found success partnering with corporations based in their communities. This kind of partnership can be mutually beneficial by boosting the company’s corporate social responsibility and providing a new pool of prospective mentors.
If you are implementing youth mentoring at your organization or have found success recruiting mentors using one of these strategies or something different altogether, let us know! Email mentoring@nrpa.org with your story or tag NRPA on social media. NRPA will be sharing resources and information throughout the month of January about how park and recreation agencies are supporting youth and families through mentoring.
Olivia Peterson (she/her) is a program manager at NRPA.